Portable Gaming Machine Emergency Shut Down Circuitry

ABSTRACT

A portable casino gaming device includes a data preservation system and is operable to monitor movement activity relating to the portable gaming device, and generate movement information relating to movements of the portable gaming device. In at least one embodiment, the movement information includes at least one of: data relating to rotation of the portable gaming device, data relating to displacement of the portable gaming device, data relating to velocity of the portable gaming device, data relating to acceleration of the portable gaming device, and/or data relating to an orientation of the portable gaming device. The portable gaming device may also be operable to analyze the movement information with respect to a first set of threshold criteria in order to detect an occurrence of a first critical condition or event at the portable gaming device, and to initiate at least one action in response to detection of the first critical condition or event. In at least one embodiment, the at least one action includes automatically initiating at least one operation to save selected gaming information in non-volatile memory, wherein the selected gaming information includes information relating to game play conducted at the portable gaming device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

This disclosure relates generally to gaming machines and systems, andmore specifically to portable gaming machine devices and controlsystems.

2. Background

Casino gaming machines are well known in the art. Such devices may beembodied as spinning reel slot machines, video slot machines or portablegaming machine.

The spinning reel slot machine is a combination of spinning mechanicalcomponents and electrical controlling components in addition to thestandard hardware and firmware components that are needed for the game.An example of this type of casino gaming machine is the IGT “S2000 Slot”machine, manufactured by IGT of Reno, Nev. This type of machine iscentered on one game theme. An example of such a game-type specificcasino gaming machine is the IGT “Red White and Blue” spinning reel slotmachine, manufactured by IGT of Reno, Nev.

The video slot machine and the portable gaming machine are different inthat there are no spinning reels to control, and also in that that mayhave many different games available for the player to play. An exampleof one type of video slot machine is IGT's “Game King Video Slot” gamingmachine. This type of machine may offer different games for the playerto select and play, such as, for example, keno, five card poker, DoubleDiamond 2000, and/or Little Green Men.

It has become popular to provide, for gaming devices such as video slotmachines, one or more bonus game features. For example, conventionalgaming devices may allow a player to make a wager and to play a basegame, obtaining winnings and losing outcomes. When a trigger conditionis obtained, a bonus feature is enabled. The bonus feature may entailthe display of bonus outcome selections where the player makes aselection to reveal a bonus, for example. Examples of such gamingdevices are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,156,397 and6,800,026, each of which is herein incorporated by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

Portable or mobile gaming machines are also known in the art, and arebecoming more popular with casinos and players since, for example, aportable gaming machine could be operated on the floor of the casino,pool side, at a table in a bar, at a sports book location or any otherlocation where gaming is allowed. An example of a mobile gaming machineis disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,676,522, herein incorporated byreference in its entirety for all purposes.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Various aspects of the present invention are directed to differentmethods, systems, and computer program products for operating a portablegaming device for use in a casino gaming network. In at least oneembodiment, the portable gaming device comprises a gaming controller,memory, a first display, at least one interface, and a data preservationsystem. In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming device isoperable to control a wager-based game played at the portable gamingdevice. Additionally, in at least one embodiment, the portable gamingdevice is operable to: monitor movement activity relating to theportable gaming device, and generate movement information relating tomovements of the portable gaming device. In at least one embodiment, themovement information includes at least one of: data relating to rotationof the portable gaming device, data relating to displacement of theportable gaming device, data relating to velocity of the portable gamingdevice, data relating to acceleration of the portable gaming device,and/or data relating to an orientation of the portable gaming device.The portable gaming device may also be operable to analyze the movementinformation with respect to a first set of threshold criteria in orderto detect an occurrence of a first critical condition or event at theportable gaming device, and to initiate at least one action in responseto detection of the first critical condition or event. In at least oneembodiment, the at least one action includes automatically initiating atleast one operation to save selected gaming information in non-volatilememory, wherein the selected gaming information includes informationrelating to game play conducted at the portable gaming device.

In some embodiments, the at least one action includes automaticallyinitiating at least one operation to identify and save selectedinformation in non-volatile memory, wherein the selected informationincludes at least one of: portable gaming device movement informationassociated with the first critical event or condition, historical gamedata relating to game play conducted at the portable gaming device, gamestate data relating to game play conducted at the portable gamingdevice, and/or wager data relating to game play conducted at theportable gaming device.

In some embodiments, the portable gaming device is operable to identifyselected information residing in volatile memory at the portable gamingdevice which is to be saved in non-volatile memory in response todetection of the first critical condition or event, and to automaticallyinitiate, in response to detection of the first critical condition orevent, at least one action to cause the identified information to besaved in non-volatile memory.

In some embodiments, the portable gaming device is operable to identifyselected information residing in volatile memory at the portable gamingdevice which is to be saved in non-volatile memory in response todetection of the first critical condition or event, and to automaticallyinitiate, in response to detection of the first critical condition orevent, at least one action to cause the identified information to betransmitted to an external or remote device.

In some embodiments, the portable gaming device is operableautomatically initiate other operations in response to detection of thefirst critical condition or event such as, for example: updating asampling interval value relating to a time interval for taking samplemeasurements of movement activity relating to the portable gamingdevice; transmitting selected information to a first external or remotedevice; providing instructions for shutting down one or more componentsof the portable gaming device; automatically powering-up one or moreselected components of the portable gaming device; recording movementinformation relating to a maximum velocity of the portable gaming deviceduring one or more time intervals; recording movement informationrelating to a maximum displacement of the portable gaming device duringa one or more time intervals; recording movement information relating toa maximum acceleration of the portable gaming device one or more timeintervals.

Additional objects, features and advantages of the various aspects ofthe present invention will become apparent from the followingdescription of its preferred embodiments, which description should betaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a perspective drawing of an exemplary mobile gaming device inaccordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B shows an example of a functional block diagram of a portion 70of a portable gaming device system in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 1C is a simplified block diagram of an exemplary portable gamingdevice 100 in accordance with a specific embodiment.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate different embodiments of various motiondetection components which may be used for implementing various aspectsand/or features described herein.

FIG. 3 shows a simplified block diagram of various components which maybe used for implementing a data preservation system in accordance with aspecific embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram of an alternate example of aportable gaming device 400 in accordance with a specific embodiment.

FIG. 5 shows an example schematic diagram of shut down comparatorcircuitry in accordance with a specific embodiment.

FIG. 6 shows an example schematic diagram of a shut down intentionalcomparator circuitry in accordance with a specific embodiment.

FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate different example embodiments of receiversystems which may be utilized in one or more systems described herein.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of network portion 800, which may be usedfor illustrating various aspects and/or features described herein.

FIG. 9 shows an example embodiment of a state diagram 900 which may beused for implementing various aspects or features described herein.

FIG. 10 shows a block diagram illustrating components of a gaming system1000 which may be used for implementing various aspects of exampleembodiments.

FIGS. 11A-E and 12A-E illustrate example embodiments of different typesof data patterns (and/or associated data values) which include portablegaming device movement data relating to different example events and/orconditions which may occur at a portable gaming device.

DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

One or more different inventions may be described in the presentapplication. Further, for one or more of the invention(s) describedherein, numerous embodiments may be described in this patentapplication, and are presented for illustrative purposes only. Thedescribed embodiments are not intended to be limiting in any sense. Oneor more of the invention(s) may be widely applicable to numerousembodiments, as is readily apparent from the disclosure. Theseembodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilledin the art to practice one or more of the invention(s), and it is to beunderstood that other embodiments may be utilized and that structural,logical, software, electrical and other changes may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the one or more of the invention(s).Accordingly, those skilled in the art will recognize that the one ormore of the invention(s) may be practiced with various modifications andalterations. Particular features of one or more of the invention(s) maybe described with reference to one or more particular embodiments orfigures that form a part of the present disclosure, and in which areshown, by way of illustration, specific embodiments of one or more ofthe invention(s). It should be understood, however, that such featuresare not limited to usage in the one or more particular embodiments orfigures with reference to which they are described. The presentdisclosure is neither a literal description of all embodiments of one ormore of the invention(s) nor a listing of features of one or more of theinvention(s) that must be present in all embodiments.

Headings of sections provided in this patent application and the titleof this patent application are for convenience only, and are not to betaken as limiting the disclosure in any way.

Devices that are in communication with each other need not be incontinuous communication with each other, unless expressly specifiedotherwise. In addition, devices that are in communication with eachother may communicate directly or indirectly through one or moreintermediaries.

A description of an embodiment with several components in communicationwith each other does not imply that all such components are required. Tothe contrary, a variety of optional components are described toillustrate the wide variety of possible embodiments of one or more ofthe invention(s).

Further, although process steps, method steps, algorithms or the likemay be described in a sequential order, such processes, methods andalgorithms may be configured to work in alternate orders. In otherwords, any sequence or order of steps that may be described in thispatent application does not, in and of itself, indicate a requirementthat the steps be performed in that order. The steps of describedprocesses may be performed in any order practical. Further, some stepsmay be performed simultaneously despite being described or implied asoccurring non-simultaneously (e.g., because one step is described afterthe other step). Moreover, the illustration of a process by itsdepiction in a drawing does not imply that the illustrated process isexclusive of other variations and modifications thereto, does not implythat the illustrated process or any of its steps are necessary to one ormore of the invention(s), and does not imply that the illustratedprocess is preferred.

When a single device or article is described, it will be readilyapparent that more than one device/article (whether or not theycooperate) may be used in place of a single device/article. Similarly,where more than one device or article is described (whether or not theycooperate), it will be readily apparent that a single device/article maybe used in place of the more than one device or article.

The functionality and/or the features of a device may be alternativelyembodied by one or more other devices that are not explicitly describedas having such functionality/features. Thus, other embodiments of one ormore of the invention(s) need not include the device itself.

As mentioned previously, use of portable or mobile gaming devices isbecoming more popular with casinos and players. As the popularity anduse of mobile gaming devices increases, it is anticipated that newand/or additional issues may arise as a result of the portable nature ofsuch gaming devices. Examples of such issues may include, for example:accidental dropping of a portable casino gaming machine, theft of aportable gaming machine, use of a portable gaming machine (e.g., forwager-based game play) in regions or locations where such use isprohibited, abuse of a portable gaming machine, intentional tampering ofa portable casino gaming machine, etc. For example, it is contemplatedthat situations may arise in which it may be necessary to determinewhether a damaged portable casino gaming machine was accidentallydropped by a player and/or whether it was intentionally dropped, thrown,and/or otherwise abused by the player.

Accordingly, various aspects described herein are directed to differentmethods, systems, and computer program products for detecting or sensingone or more events and/or conditions which, for example, may result indamage to a portable gaming device and/or which may result in loss ofinformation associated with the portable gaming device. Additionalaspects described herein are directed to different methods, systems, andcomputer program products for initiating one or more appropriateaction(s) in response to detection of such events/conditions. Accordingto different embodiments, various examples of different types of actionswhich may be initiated in response to a detected event or conditionrelating to a portable gaming device may include, but are not limitedto, one or more of the following (or combinations thereof):

-   -   Recoding details relating to time, location,        acceleration/deceleration, velocity, displacement, orientation,        etc. of the portable gaming device;    -   Taking appropriate action to prevent damage to one or more        components or systems of the portable gaming device (such as,        for example, suspending or shutting down one or more systems or        components, parking hard drive heads, etc.).    -   Taking appropriate action to preserve selected data generated        and/or stored at the portable gaming device such as, for        example, historical game data, critical information, game state        data, wager related data, and/or other data or information which        may be desired and/or used for reconstructing conditions and/or        events at the portable gaming device before, during and/or after        the detected event or condition.    -   Taking appropriate action to identify and transmit selected data        from the portable gaming device to an external system in        anticipation of an event which may result in damage to the        portable gaming device (such as, for example, damage caused by        impact as a result of the portable gaming device being dropped        or thrown).    -   Etc.

FIG. 1A illustrates an example of a portable gaming device (PGD) 20 inaccordance with one embodiment. In general, PGD 20 includes a body orhousing 22. Body 22 may be constructed from a wide variety of materialsand be in one of many shapes. In one embodiment, the body 22 isconstructed from one or more molded polypropylene or other plasticcomponents. The body 22 may be constructed of metal or a wide variety ofother materials. As illustrated, the body 22 is generally rectangular inshape, having a front side or face 24, a rear side or face (notvisible), a top end 26, a bottom end 28, a first side 30 and a secondside 32. Preferably, the body 22 defines an enclosed interior space (notshown) in which a variety of components are located as described below.

In a preferred embodiment, PGD 20 is adapted to present video and soundgame data to a player. As illustrated, PGD 20 includes a display 34. Thedisplay is located in the front face 24 of the body 22, thus facingupwardly towards a player. In a preferred embodiment, the display 34comprises a liquid crystal display (“LCD”), and in particular, an LCDpermitting touch-screen input. It will be appreciated that other typesof displays may be provided such as, for example, EL displays, OLEDdisplays, multi-layer displays, etc. Portable gaming device 20 alsoincludes a sound-generating device in the form of at least one speaker36. In one embodiment, the speaker 36 is positioned beneath a top orcover portion of the body 22 having one or more perforations orapertures therein through which the sound may readily travel. Asillustrated, the speaker 36 is located near the bottom end 28 of thebody 22, generally opposite the display 34. It will be appreciated thatthe speaker 36 or additional speakers may be provided in a wide varietyof locations, such as at one or both sides 30, 32 of the body 22.

In a preferred embodiment, PGD 20 is adapted to send and/or receive datafrom another device. As such, PGD 20 includes one or more data inputand/or output devices or interfaces. In one embodiment, PGD 20 includesan RS-232 data port 38 for transmitting and accepting data, such asthrough a cable extending between PGD 20 and another device, such as acomputer. In one embodiment, PGD 20 includes a USB data port 40 fortransmitting and accepting data, also through a cable. In oneembodiment, PGD 20 includes an infrared data transmitter/receiver 42 fortransmitting information in wireless, infrared light form. In apreferred embodiment, PGD 20 includes another wireless communicationdevice 44, such as a wireless communication device/interface operatingat radio frequency, such as in accordance with the IEEE-802.11x or theBluetooth standard, or operating according to NFM standards as describedabove.

A user provides input to PGD 20, such as for playing a wagering game orfor a non-gaming service. As stated above, one means of input may bethrough the display 34. The display 34 may also be arranged to acceptinput via a stylus or other device. In one embodiment, PGD 20 includes akeypad 46. In one or more embodiments, the keypad 46 is a sealed keypadhaving one or more keys or buttons. PGD 20 can include a microphone 48arranged to accept voice input from a player. A smart card reader,optical reader or other input device may be provided for readinginformation from another element, such as a card, ticket or the like.Portable gaming device may also include a keyboard or mouse.

Other input interfaces may alternatively be provided or be provided inaddition to those input devices described. For example, the portablegaming device may be configured or designed to allow a user to provideinput via one or more physical gestures and/or via the use of a wirelessuser input device. Various examples of such alternate input interfacesare described, for example, in U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/825,481, (Attorney Docket No. IGT1P090X1/P-795CIP1), by Mattice, etal., entitled “GESTURE CONTROLLED CASINO GAMING SYSTEM,” filed Jul. 6,2007, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference for allpurposes.

In one embodiment, PGD 20 includes an image collection device 41, suchas a camera. The image collection device 41 may be used, for example, tocapture the image of a user or player of PGD 20. This image informationmay be used for security or authentication purposes, as set forth ingreater detail below. PGD 20 may also include a fingerprint scanner 49and/or other types of bio-information/authentication component(s). Inone embodiment, as illustrated, the fingerprint scanner 49 may belocated behind or beneath a user input button, such as a “spin” or“draw” button. In this manner, a player's fingerprint may be obtainedwithout the user or player having to be consciously aware that afingerprint is being provided participate (although informed, forexample during device registration and check out, that a fingerprint canbe taken when the buttons are pressed). In one embodiment, a player'sscanned fingerprint information may be used for authentication purposes.PGD 20 may also include a card reader 50. As illustrated, the cardreader 50 is located in a side 30 of the body 22 of PGD 20. In apreferred embodiment, the card reader 50 comprises a magnetic stripereader for reading information from a magnetic stripe of a card. Thecard reader may also be adapted to write or store data to a smart cardor portable memory module.

As illustrated, the card reader 50 includes a slot that is positioned inthe side 30 of PGD 20. PGD 20 may be battery-powered, such as with arechargeable battery pack. An ON/OFF button 47 may be provided forcontrolling the power to PGD 20. As described in greater detail below,PGD 20 may be docked at or otherwise associated with a free-standingelectronic gaming machine or other gaming device. At such times that PGD20 is docked, the internal battery of the device can be recharged forlater use in an undocked or “remote” mode, as will be readilyappreciated. Appropriate detection provisions, warnings and safeguardsfor a low battery status in portable gaming device 20 while in such aremote mode can also be provided.

Preferably, portable gaming device 20 includes control mechanisms forcontrolling the operation of the device, including accepting input andproviding output. One embodiment of such a control mechanisms areillustrated in FIG. 1B.

FIG. 1B shows an example of a simplified functional block diagram of aportion 70 of a portable gaming device system in accordance with oneembodiment. As illustrated in the example of FIG. 1B, portable gamingdevice preferably includes a computing environment comprising a centralprocessing unit 52. The central processing unit 52 preferably comprisesa microprocessor. The central processing unit 52 is associated with abi-directional system bus 54. The system bus 54 may contain, forexample, address lines for addressing a video memory or main memory. Inaddition, the system bus 54 preferably includes a data bus fortransferring data between and among components associated with the bus54. Alternatively, multiplex data/address lines may be used instead ofseparate data and address lines.

The display 34 is coupled to the bus 54. In one embodiment, a videomemory (not shown) is provided in association with the bus 54. The videomemory may be dual-ported video random access memory. The video memoryis preferably coupled to and arranged to drive the display 34. A memory56 is associated with the system bus 54. In one embodiment, the memory56 comprises dynamic random access memory (“DRAM”), synchronous DRAM orother forms of random access memory. The memory 56 may have other formsas well, such as electronically erasable programmable read only memory(“EEPROM”), non-volatile RAM (NV-RAM), flash memory, etc. Preferably,the memory 56 is of the type that permits data to be written thereto andread there from. A mass storage device 58 is preferably also accessiblevia the bus 54. The mass storage device 58 may be of the read-only type(such as a CD or DVD optical drive) or may be of the read-and-writevariety such as flash memory, compact flash, or CD/DVD-R/W drives.

As illustrated in FIG. 1B, the variety of input and output devices canbe associated with the system bus 54, and thus the other componentsassociated with the bus. As illustrated, the speaker 36, keypad 46 andcard reader 50 are associated with the system bus 54. A variety of datainput/output devices (“I/O Devices”) may also associated with the systembus 54, such as, though not specifically illustrated, the RS-232 port38, the USB 40, and the infrared communication transmitter/receiver 42.As will be appreciated, these devices/elements may operate in accordancewith different protocols and have different architectures, and haveappropriate interfaces provided for communicating with the system bus54. For example, the infrared transmitter/receiver may have differentlayers, including a physical layer including the light-emitting device,and link and other layers which include software and/or hardware, as isknown. A variety of other input/output devices may be associated withPGD 20, as now known or later developed.

Preferably, as stated above, PGD 20 includes a wireless, radio frequencycommunication interface 44 operating in accordance with the IEEE 802.11xor Bluetooth standards. In another embodiment, communication interface44 operates according to near-field magnetic communication standardsthat enables device 20 to receive and transmit NFM signals. Thearchitectures and protocols of these and other wireless communicationinterfaces are well known in the wireless technology field. In general,however, interface 44 permits two-way data communication. As describedin detail, PGD 20 may be permitted to communicate with a wide variety ofdevices/systems, including at least one device associated with a gamingnetwork, such as an RF transmitter or an NFM antenna. In accordance withthe invention, PGD 20 can send data and receive data, including programcode, through the communication interface 44 (or the other input/outputdevices, such as the infrared transmitter/receiver). As one exampledescribed in more detail below, a gaming server may transmit requestedcode for an application via a transceiver to the communication interface44 of PGD 20. The received code may be executed by the centralprocessing unit 52 as it is received and/or be stored in the memory 56for later execution. In one embodiment, PGD 20 may include a mass datastorage device 58 such as a hard drive, CD-ROM or the like. In one ormore embodiments, the memory 56 may comprise a smart card or similareasily removable (and replaceable) device. In such event, data, such asoperating code, may be associated with PGD 20 via a CD-ROM placed in aCD-ROM drive or by insertion of a coded smart card or portable memorymodule.

Additionally, as illustrated in the example of FIG. 1B, portable gamingdevice may include a data preservation system 62 which is configured ordesigned to detect or sense one or more events and/or conditions which,for example, may result in damage to the portable gaming device and/orwhich may result in loss of information associated with the portablegaming device. Additionally, the data preservation system 62 may beoperable to initiate one or more appropriate action(s) in response tothe detection of such events/conditions. For example, in at least oneembodiment, the data preservation system may be operable to detect thatthe portable gaming device is currently in a freefall condition (e.g.,in which the portable gaming device is falling to the ground), and inresponse, may be operable to implement one or more actions (e.g., beforethe portable gaming device impacts the ground) in order to preserveselected data and/or minimize damage to the portable gaming device.Examples of such actions may include, but are not limited to, one ormore of the following (or combinations thereof):

-   -   provide instructions for shutting down one or more components of        the portable gaming device,    -   provide notification (and/or cause the portable gaming device to        provide notification) of the unit's freefall condition to an        external system,    -   transmit (and/or cause the portable gaming device to transmit)        current game state information (and/or other game/wager related        information) to an external system,    -   record (and/or cause the portable gaming device to record)        various data relating to the event/condition such as, for        example: the maximum distance the unit has fallen, the unit's        maximum velocity at impact, details relating to the impact        event, conditions or events which occurred at the portable        gaming device before the impact event (which, for example, may        be used to determine or reconstruct how the unit impacted the        floor),    -   etc.

Additional details relating to the data preservation system and/orcomponents/features associated therewith are described in greater detailbelow.

Although the foregoing exemplary portable gaming device 20 is fairlyspecific with respect to many details, it will be readily appreciatedthat a wide variety of similarly suitable devices can also be used as aportable gaming device. Other exemplary portable gaming devices andfeatures thereof are provided in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 6,846,238,issued to Wells, and entitled “Portable Game Player,” which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Additional featuresand applications for a suitable portable gaming device can also be foundin commonly owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/937,990 by Nguyen,et al., entitled “Apparatus and Methods for Wireless GamingCommunications,” which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

It will be appreciated that not all items and features of the above andincorporated portable gaming devices may be required for a givenportable gaming device or associated system, and that other items andfeatures not disclosed may also be included. In some cases, a portablegaming device can be provided by the casino or gaming operator, such asthrough sales, rentals or checkout procedures, while in other instances,a suitable portable gaming device can be an outside device that isprovided by the player or another third party. Such a privately ownedoutside portable gaming device can be, for example, a personal desk ordigital assistant (“PDA”), laptop, tablet PC, MP-3 players, cell phone(e.g., a Blackberry® or Treo® type phones), video gaming consoles, orany other similarly suitable device. As discussed herein, it will beunderstood that use of the term “portable gaming device” can refer tothe exemplary portable gaming device 20 disclosed above, as well as anyother suitable device that can serve as a portable gaming device for anypurpose of the present invention, and that such a device or devices mayor may not be portable or hand-held. Further, while use of the terms“portable” and “mobile” gaming device are used, it is understood thatuse of other suitable non-portable portable gaming devices may besubstituted in relevant instances.

In a preferred embodiment, enforced associations and rules among users,portable gaming devices, and zones are used to perform verification andauthentication in the portable gaming device tracking and zone networkof the present invention. These associations and rules can be describedcollectively as a “virtual leash”. A repeated checking of a PGD, itslocation, and biometric data of the user holding the device can beperformed, whereby wager-based gaming at the personal gaming device issuspended or terminated if such items cannot be authenticated orverified on a repeated basis. Such repeated checking can be consideredanother type of “heartbeat,” with system alerts, alarms, player warningsand/or termination or suspension of a gaming session taking placedepending upon the nature of a heartbeat violation.

As described, this comprises a system in which activation information istransmitted to PGD, and where if the information is not received orconfirmed, PGD will not present games for play and/or may even emit analarm or other alert signal, or disable. This prevents, for example, auser from taking PGD or attempting to use it in unauthorized zones orareas. This can also prevent the illegal or unauthorized use of PGD,such as by a minor. Further details of such a virtual leash typeconfiguration are provided below.

In a preferred embodiment, a portable gaming device includes featuresadapted to detect that an authorized or proper player is currentlyholding PGD. As noted above, this might be accomplished by usingcapacitive touch sensing devices embedded into the edges of PGD. Suchdevices could be similar to touch-style light switches and would be usedby the software operating on PGD to detect that the player is still inpossession of PGD. Should the player set PGD down or otherwise losephysical connection to the device, the operating software will sensethis, notify the system via a wireless RF or NFM connection that theuser is no longer in possession of the unit, and revert to an idle modeor disable. Should the player pick up PGD again, the device mightrequire a complete re-authentication of the user, such as via one ormore biometric sensing methods. Also, at periodic events determined bythe operating software, PGD may ask the player to re-authenticateherself in order to continue with a particular gaming session.

Another method that might be used to determine that only a properlyauthorized player is playing PGD is to use some form of secondaryidentification and an associated detection device. Such secondary playeridentification can involve, for example, an RFID player tracking card orother suitable RFID item and an RFID reading device and system. Detailsfor such personally identifying RFID related gaming devices and featuresthereof are provided in commonly owned and co-pending U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/897,822, by Benbrahim, filed Jul. 22, 2004, andentitled “Remote Gaming Eligibility System And Method Using RFID Tags,”which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and for allpurposes. In practice, rather than require the player to continuallyprovide his or her fingerprint or other biometric identification on aregular basis, PGD or other system device could periodically “ping” thesecondary player identification item, such as an RFID card, token,bracelet or the like, and expect a correct response. In effect, thispinging of the secondary identification device can then become theeffective heartbeat of the virtual leash or leashes. If no response oran incorrect response is received (i.e., no heartbeat or improperheartbeat), then PGD could be adapted to suspend game play immediatelyand require an actual biometric authentication for the authorizedplayer.

In some embodiments, the determination of a proper or authorized user orplayer may depend on a previously established list of one or more usersor players who are authorized to play according to a variety ofpotential factors, such as for a given game, a given portable gamingdevice, or at a given area or zone. Such pre-approved users or playersmay be limited to the user who owns or checks out PGD, or the user whobuys the game seeds, for example. In other embodiments, a group ofplayers may be listed as those who are authorized to play a given game,on a given portable gaming device, or at a set location. For example,while a husband might be the person who checks out a portable gamingdevice and/or purchases games seeds for the play of games on PGD, boththe husband and wife might be listed as authorized or proper players forthose games on that portable gaming device. As such, a first user mightbuy the game seeds or otherwise determine what games or how many gamesare to be played on a portable gaming device, while a second user mightbe the one to actually play or request play of the games. As noted, insome instances, it may be preferable to restrict the second user to bethe same person as the first user; while in others, a group of users maybe eligible to be such a second user. In still further embodiments, itmay be possible for the second user to be separate from the first user,such as where a person might want to buy games for another person orgroup of people not including the buyer, and a restriction is createdthat the recipient or recipients be the only proper or authorizedplayers.

Another form of virtual leash can be created with respect to anappropriate zone for PGD in order to conduct wager based gamingactivities on the device. As described in detail above, NFM or RFtransmitters or other sensing means can be used to allow gamingoperation only when PGD is located in specific zones. As in the aboveembodiments involving a player-specific virtual leash, PGD can berendered non-operational when it is removed beyond the boundary of azone, such as a legal gaming area, particularly with respect to wagerbased gaming activities.

In some embodiments, such a location based virtual leash can alsoprovide a means for ensuring that gaming operator-owned proprietaryportable gaming devices are returned and not stolen. For example, wherea casino owned or other non-player owned portable gaming device isremoved from an authorized zone, detection of such a removal could bemade immediately, and one or more security measures could be activated.Such security measures might include an alert to the system and/orvarious casino personnel or security, as well as a loud audible signal.Such a signal could be a warning message to a player, as well as tonearby security, and could be emitted from PGD itself and/or externalsystem speakers. Additional security measures might involve the memoryof PGD being erased, such that reverse engineering could not take placeat some uncontrolled location.

As will be appreciated, the task of limiting play of a portable gamingdevice to a particular “authorized” gaming zone using radio frequency,as opposed to near field magnetic induction, may involve a number ofconsiderations given the typical RF hostile casino environment. Onemethod of determining location could involve the implementation of anumber of “pico cells.” As is generally known, such pico cells cancomprise wireless system access points having a limited amount of powerand range. Such limited power and range can be compensated for by usinga large number of pico cells, with the overall result being that tightercontrols can be had with respect to the exact shape and size of adefined restricted area. Whereas more powerful access points might emitsignals that could be detected and used at significant distances, picocells tend to have such a limited range that detection or communicationat distances of more than a few feet or yards might not be possible. Ofcourse, pico cell signal strength and receiver sensitivity on PGD couldalso be controlled, such that a definite operational range for the picocells could be set. Once set, PGD would then be operable with respect togaming only when it is able to detect a signal from a system pico cell.Once PGD is moved from an authorized zone, resulting in no pico cellsbeing within a few feet or yards of PGD, then no pico cell signal couldbe heard, and gaming on PGD could be suspended or terminated.

Additional details relating to various aspects of mobile device gamingtechnology are described, for example, in U.S. patent application Ser.No. 11/518,342, (Attorney Docket No. IGT1P294/P-1096), by Nguyen et al.,entitled “MOBILE GAMING DEVICES FOR USE IN A GAMING NETWORK HAVINGGAMING AND NON-GAMING ZONES”, filed Sep. 8, 2006, the entirety of whichis incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.

FIG. 1C is a simplified block diagram of an example portable gamingsystem 100 in accordance with a specific embodiment. According todifferent embodiments, different portable gaming devices may beimplemented using one or more components of the portable gaming system100 of FIG. 1C.

As illustrated in the embodiment of FIG. 1C, portable gaming system 100includes at least one processor 110, at least one interface 106, andmemory 116.

In one implementation, processor 110 and master game controller 112 areincluded in a logic device 113 enclosed in a logic device housing. Theprocessor 110 may include any conventional processor or logic deviceconfigured to execute software allowing various configuration andreconfiguration tasks such as, for example: a) communicating with aremote source via communication interface 106, such as a server thatstores authentication information or game information; b) convertingsignals read by an interface to a format corresponding to that used bysoftware or memory in the portable gaming system; c) accessing memory toconfigure or reconfigure game parameters in the memory according toindicia read from the device; d) communicating with interfaces, variousperipheral devices 122 and/or I/O devices; e) operating peripheraldevices 122 such as, for example, card readers, paper ticket readers,etc.; f) operating various I/O devices such as, for example, displays135, input devices 130; etc. For instance, the processor 110 may sendmessages including game play information to the displays 135 to informplayers of cards dealt, wagering information, and/or other desiredinformation.

The portable gaming system 100 also includes memory 116 which mayinclude, for example, volatile memory (e.g., RAM 109), non-volatilememory 119 (e.g., disk memory, FLASH memory, EPROMs, etc.), unalterablememory (e.g., EPROMs 108), etc. The memory may be configured or designedto store, for example: 1) configuration software 114 such as all theparameters and settings for a game playable on the portable gamingsystem; 2) associations 118 between configuration indicia read from adevice with one or more parameters and settings; 3) communicationprotocols allowing the processor 110 to communicate with peripheraldevices 122 and I/O devices 111; 4) a secondary memory storage device115 such as a non-volatile memory device, configured to store gamingsoftware related information (the gaming software related informationand memory may be used to store various audio files and games notcurrently being used and invoked in a configuration or reconfiguration);5) communication transport protocols (such as, for example, TCP/IP, USB,Firewire, IEEE1394, Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11x (IEEE 802.11 standards),hiperlan/2, HomeRF, etc.) for allowing the portable gaming system tocommunicate with local and non-local devices using such protocols; etc.In one implementation, the master game controller 112 communicates usinga serial communication protocol. A few examples of serial communicationprotocols that may be used to communicate with the master gamecontroller include but are not limited to USB, RS-232 and Netplex (aproprietary protocol developed by IGT, Reno, Nev.).

A plurality of device drivers 142 may be stored in memory 116. Exampleof different types of device drivers may include device drivers forportable gaming system components, device drivers for peripheralcomponents 122, etc. Typically, the device drivers 142 utilize acommunication protocol of some type that enables communication with aparticular physical device. The device driver abstracts the hardwareimplementation of a device. For example, a device drive may be writtenfor each type of card reader that may be potentially connected to theportable gaming system. Examples of communication protocols used toimplement the device drivers include Netplex, USB, Serial, Ethernet 175,Firewire, I/O debouncer, direct memory map, serial, PCI, parallel, RF,Bluetooth™, near-field communications (e.g., using near-fieldmagnetics), 802.11 (WiFi), etc. Netplex is a proprietary IGT standardwhile the others are open standards. According to a specific embodiment,when one type of a particular device is exchanged for another type ofthe particular device, a new device driver may be loaded from the memory116 by the processor 110 to allow communication with the device. Forinstance, one type of card reader in portable gaming system 100 may bereplaced with a second type of card reader where device drivers for bothcard readers are stored in the memory 116.

In some embodiments, the software units stored in the memory 116 may beupgraded as needed. For instance, when the memory 116 is a hard drive,new games, game options, various new parameters, new settings forexisting parameters, new settings for new parameters, device drivers,and new communication protocols may be uploaded to the memory from themaster game controller 112 or from some other external device. Asanother example, when the memory 116 includes a CD/DVD drive including aCD/DVD designed or configured to store game options, parameters, andsettings, the software stored in the memory may be upgraded by replacinga first CD/DVD with a second CD/DVD. In yet another example, when thememory 116 uses one or more flash memory 119 or EPROM 108 units designedor configured to store games, game options, parameters, settings, thesoftware stored in the flash and/or EPROM memory units may be upgradedby replacing one or more memory units with new memory units whichinclude the upgraded software. In another embodiment, one or more of thememory devices, such as the hard-drive, may be employed in a gamesoftware download process from a remote software server.

In some embodiments, the portable gaming system 100 may also includevarious authentication and/or validation components 144 which may beused for authenticating/validating specified portable gaming systemcomponents and/or information such as, for example, hardware components,software components, firmware components, peripheral device components,user input device components, information received from one or more userinput devices, information stored in the portable gaming system memory116, etc. Examples of various authentication and/or validationcomponents are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,620,047, entitled,“ELECTRONIC GAMING APPARATUS HAVING AUTHENTICATION DATA SETS,”incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

Peripheral devices 122 may include several device interfaces such as,for example, one or more of the following (or combinations thereof):transponders 154, wire/wireless power distribution components 158, inputinterface(s) 130 (which, for example, may include contact and/ornon-contact interfaces), sensors 160, audio and/or video devices 162(e.g., cameras, speakers, etc.), wireless communication components 156,motion/gesture analysis and interpretation component(s) 164, datapreservation components 162, motion detection components 166,geolocation components 176, information filtering components 179, useridentification components 177, one or more portable power sources 168,etc.

Sensors 160 may include, for example, optical sensors, pressure sensors,RF sensors, Infrared sensors, image sensors, thermal sensors, biometricsensors, etc. Such sensors may be used for a variety of functions suchas, for example: detecting movements and/or gestures of various objectswithin a predetermined proximity to the portable gaming system;detecting the presence and/or identity of various persons (e.g.,players, casino employees, etc.), devices (e.g., user input devices),and/or systems within a predetermined proximity to the portable gamingsystem.

In one implementation, at least a portion of the sensors 160 and/orinput devices 130 may be implemented in the form of touch keys selectedfrom a wide variety of commercially available touch keys used to provideelectrical control signals. Alternatively, some of the touch keys may beimplemented in another form which are touch sensors such as thoseprovided by a touchscreen display. For example, in at least oneimplementation, the portable gaming system player displays may includecontact input interfaces and/or non-contact input interfaces forallowing players to provide desired information (e.g., game playinstructions and/or other input) to the portable gaming system and/orother devices in the casino gaming network (such as, for example, playertracking systems, side wagering systems, etc.).

Wireless communication components 156 may include one or morecommunication interfaces having different architectures and utilizing avariety of protocols such as, for example, 802.11 (WiFi), 802.15(including Bluetooth™), 802.16 (WiMax), 802.22, Cellular standards suchas CDMA, CDMA2000, WCDMA, Radio Frequency (e.g., RFID), Infrared, NearField Magnetic communication protocols, etc. The communication links maytransmit electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals which carrydigital data streams or analog signals representing various types ofinformation.

Power distribution components 158 may include, for example, componentsor devices which are operable for providing wired or wireless power toother devices. For example, in one implementation, the powerdistribution components 158 may include a magnetic induction systemwhich is adapted to provide wireless power to one or more user inputdevices near the portable gaming system. In one implementation, a userinput device docking region may be provided which includes a powerdistribution component that is able to recharge a user input devicewithout requiring metal-to-metal contact. In at least one embodiment,power distribution components 158 may be operable to distribute power toone or more internal components such as, for example, one or morerechargeable power sources (e.g., rechargeable batteries) located at theportable gaming device.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming system may include ageolocation module 176 which, for example, may be configured or designedto acquire geolocation information from remote sources and use theacquired geolocation information to determine information relating to arelative and/or absolute position of the portable gaming system. Forexample, in one implementation, the geolocation module 146 may beadapted to receive GPS signal information for use in determining theposition or location of the portable gaming system. In anotherimplementation, the geolocation module 146 may be adapted to receivemultiple wireless signals from multiple remote devices (e.g., gamingmachines, servers, wireless access points, etc.) and use the signalinformation to compute position/location information relating to theposition or location of the portable gaming system.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming system may include auser identification module 177. In one implementation, the useridentification module may be adapted to determine the identity of thecurrent user or current owner of the portable gaming system/device. Forexample, in one embodiment, the current user may be required to performa log in process at the portable gaming device in order to access one ormore features. Alternatively, the portable gaming device may be adaptedto automatically determine the identity of the current user based uponone or more external signals such as, for example, an RFID tag or badgeworn by the current user which provides a wireless signal to theportable gaming device for determining the identity of the current user.In at least one implementation, various security features may beincorporated into the portable gaming device to prevent unauthorizedusers from accessing confidential or sensitive information.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming system may include anInformation filtering module(s) 179.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming system may include atleast one power source 168. In at least one implementation, the powersource may include at least one mobile power source for allowing theportable gaming system to operate in a mobile environment. For example,in one implementation, the portable gaming system 100 may include one ormore rechargeable batteries which, for example, may be implemented usinga rechargeable, thin-film type battery.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming system may include atleast one motion detection component 166 for detecting motion ormovement of the portable gaming system and/or for detecting motion,movement, gestures from the user. In at least one embodiment, motiondetection component(s) may include one or more of the following (orcombinations thereof): accelerometer component(s), gyro component(s),camera component(s), rangefinder component(s), velocity transducercomponent(s), etc. In one embodiment, the motion detection component(s)may be operable to detect gross motion of a user (e.g., player, dealer,etc.).

In at least one embodiment, motion/gesture analysis and interpretationcomponent(s) 164 may be operable to analyze and/or interpret informationrelating to detected player movements and/or gestures in order, forexample, to determine appropriate player input information relating tothe detected player movements and/or gestures. For example, in at leastone embodiment, motion/gesture analysis and interpretation component(s)164 may be operable to perform one or more functions such as, forexample: analyze the detected gross motion or gestures of a participant;interpret the participant's motion or gestures (e.g., in the context ofa casino game being played) in order to identify instructions or inputfrom the participant; utilize the interpreted instructions/input toadvance the game state; etc. In other embodiments, at least a portion ofthese additional functions may be implemented at a remote system ordevice.

For example, during play of a game of blackjack at a conventional gametable, a player may signal “hit me” to the dealer by the player flickingor moving his cards in a sweeping motion towards the player. In at leastone embodiment where the player is performing the “hit me” gesture usinga portable gaming device, the portable gaming device may be adapted toautomatically detect the player's gesture (e.g., gross motion) bysensing motion or movement (e.g., rotation, displacement, velocity,acceleration, etc.) using, for example, one or more motion detectionsensors. In one embodiment, the portable gaming device may also beadapted to analyze the detected motion data in order to interpret thegesture (or other input data) intended by the player. Once interpreted,the portable gaming device may then provide the interpreted player inputdata (e.g., “hit me”) to the portable gaming device (and/or otherdevices/systems) for advancement of the game state. Alternatively, theportable gaming device may be adapted to transmit information relatingto the detected motion data to an external gaming system, and theexternal game system may be adapted to analyze the detected motion datain order to interpret the gesture (or other input data) intended by theplayer.

According to different embodiments, other criteria may also be used whenanalyzing the detected motion data for proper interpretation of theplayer's gestures and/or other input instructions. For example, theinterpretation of the detected motion data may be constrained based onone or more of the following criteria (or combination thereof): type ofgame being played (e.g., craps, blackjack, poker, slots, etc.), locationof the player/portable gaming device; current portable gaming deviceoperating mode (e.g., table game operating mode, gaming machineoperating mode, bonus game operating mode, restaurant operating mode,theater operating mode, lounge operating mode, hotel operating mode,parking service operating mode, room service operating mode, newsmagazine operating mode, etc.); game rules; time; player ID; playerpreferences; previous motion interpretation/analysis; and/or othercriteria described herein.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming system may include adata preservation system 162 which is configured or designed to detector sense one or more events and/or conditions which, for example, mayresult in damage to the portable gaming system and/or which may resultin loss of information associated with the portable gaming system.Additionally, the data preservation system 162 may be operable toinitiate one or more appropriate action(s) in response to the detectionof such events/conditions.

In other embodiments (not shown) other peripheral devices include:player tracking devices, card readers, bill validator/paper ticketreaders, etc. Such devices may each comprise resources for handling andprocessing configuration indicia such as a microcontroller that convertsvoltage levels for one or more scanning devices to signals provided toprocessor 110. In one embodiment, application software for interfacingwith peripheral devices 122 may store instructions (such as, forexample, how to read indicia from a portable device) in a memory devicesuch as, for example, non-volatile memory, hard drive or a flash memory.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming system may include userinput device control components may be operable to control operatingmode selection functionality, features, and/or components associatedwith one or more user input devices which communication with theportable gaming device. For example, in at least one embodiment, theuser input device control components may be operable to remotely controland/or configure components of one or more user input devices based onvarious parameters and/or upon detection of specific events orconditions such as, for example: time of day, player activity levels;location of the user input device; identity of user input device user;user input; system override (e.g., emergency condition detected);proximity to other devices belonging to same group or association;proximity to specific objects, regions, zones, etc.

In at least one implementation, the portable gaming system may includecard readers such as used with credit cards, or other identificationcode reading devices to allow or require player identification inconnection with play of the card game and associated recording of gameaction. Such a user identification interface can be implemented in theform of a variety of magnetic card readers commercially available forreading user-specific identification information. The user-specificinformation can be provided on specially constructed magnetic cardsissued by a casino, or magnetically coded credit cards or debit cardsfrequently used with national credit organizations such as VISA™,MASTERCARD™, banks and/or other institutions.

The portable gaming system may include other types of participantidentification mechanisms which may use a fingerprint image, eye bloodvessel image reader, or other suitable biological information to confirmidentity of the user. Still further it is possible to provide suchparticipant identification information by having the dealer manuallycode in the information in response to the player indicating his or hercode name or real name. Such additional identification could also beused to confirm credit use of a smart card, transponder, and/or player'suser input device.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other memory types,including various computer readable media, may be used for storing andexecuting program instructions pertaining to the operation of variousportable gaming systems described herein. Because such information andprogram instructions may be employed to implement the systems/methodsdescribed herein, example embodiments may relate to machine-readablemedia that include program instructions, state information, etc. forperforming various operations described herein. Examples ofmachine-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, magneticmedia such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tape; optical mediasuch as CD-ROM disks; magneto-optical media such as floptical disks; andhardware devices that are specially configured to store and performprogram instructions, such as read-only memory devices (ROM) and randomaccess memory (RAM). Example embodiments may also be embodied intransmission media such as a carrier wave traveling over an appropriatemedium such as airwaves, optical lines, electric lines, etc. Examples ofprogram instructions include both machine code, such as produced by acompiler, and files including higher level code that may be executed bythe computer using an interpreter.

According to specific embodiments, at least some embodiments of variousgaming devices, gaming machines, and/or portable gaming devicesdescribed herein (collectively referred to herein as “gaming devices”),may be implemented with special features and/or additional circuitrythat differentiate such gaming devices from general-purpose portablecomputers (e.g., portable PC computers, PDAs, etc., collectively bereferred to herein as “PCs”).

For example, gaming devices are highly regulated to ensure fairness and,in many cases, gaming devices are operable to dispense monetary awardsof multiple millions of dollars. Therefore, to satisfy security andregulatory requirements in a gaming environment, hardware and softwarearchitectures may be implemented in gaming devices that differsignificantly from those of general-purpose computers. For purposes ofillustration, a description of gaming devices relative togeneral-purpose computing machines and some examples of the additional(or different) components and features found in gaming devices aredescribed below. It is noted that such description may also beapplicable for describing differences between general-purpose computingdevices/systems, and gaming devices/systems described herein.

At first glance, one might think that adapting PC technologies to thegaming industry would be a simple proposition because both PCs andgaming devices employ microprocessors that control a variety of devices.However, because of such reasons as 1) the regulatory requirements thatare placed upon gaming devices, 2) the harsh environment in which gamingdevices operate, 3) security requirements and 4) fault tolerancerequirements, adapting PC technologies to a gaming device can be quitedifficult. Further, techniques and methods for solving a problem in thePC industry, such as device compatibility and connectivity issues, mightnot be adequate in the gaming environment. For instance, a fault or aweakness tolerated in a PC, such as security holes in software orfrequent crashes, may not be tolerated in a gaming device because in agaming device these faults can lead to a direct loss of funds from thegaming device, such as stolen cash or loss of revenue when the gamingdevice is not operating properly.

For the purposes of illustration, a few differences between PC systemsand gaming devices will be described. A first difference between gamingdevices and common PC based computers systems is that gaming devices aredesigned to be state-based systems. In a state-based system, the systemstores and maintains its current state in a non-volatile memory, suchthat, in the event of a power failure or other malfunction the gamingdevice will return to its current state when the power is restored. Forinstance, if a player was shown an award for a game of chance and,before the award could be provided to the player the power failed, thegaming device, upon the restoration of power, would return to the statewhere the award is indicated. As anyone who has used a PC, knows, PCsare not state machines and a majority of data is usually lost when amalfunction occurs. This requirement affects the software and hardwaredesign on a gaming device.

A second important difference between gaming devices and common PC basedcomputer systems is that for regulation purposes, the software on thegaming device used to generate the game of chance and operate the gamingdevice has been designed to be static and monolithic to prevent cheatingby the operator of gaming device. For instance, one solution that hasbeen employed in the gaming industry to prevent cheating and satisfyregulatory requirements has been to manufacture a gaming device that canuse a proprietary processor running instructions to generate the game ofchance from an EPROM or other form of non-volatile memory. The codinginstructions on the EPROM are static (non-changeable) and must beapproved by a gaming regulators in a particular jurisdiction andinstalled in the presence of a person representing the gamingjurisdiction. Any changes to any part of the software required togenerate the game of chance, such as adding a new device driver used bythe master gaming controller to operate a device during generation ofthe game of chance can require a new EPROM to be burnt, approved by thegaming jurisdiction and reinstalled on the gaming device in the presenceof a gaming regulator. Regardless of whether the EPROM solution is used,to gain approval in most gaming jurisdictions, a gaming device mustdemonstrate sufficient safeguards that prevent an operator or player ofa gaming device from manipulating hardware and software in a manner thatgives them an unfair and some cases an illegal advantage. The gamingdevice should have a means to determine if the code it will execute isvalid. If the code is not valid, the gaming device must have a means toprevent the code from being executed. The code validation requirementsin the gaming industry affect both hardware and software designs ongaming devices.

A third important difference between gaming devices and common PC basedcomputer systems is the number and kinds of peripheral devices used on agaming device are not as great as on PC based computer systems.Traditionally, in the gaming industry, gaming devices have beenrelatively simple in the sense that the number of peripheral devices andthe number of functions the gaming device has been limited. Further, inoperation, the functionality of gaming devices were relatively constantonce the gaming device was deployed, i.e., new peripherals devices andnew gaming software were infrequently added to the gaming device. Thisdiffers from a PC where users will go out and buy different combinationsof devices and software from different manufacturers and connect them toa PC to suit their needs depending on a desired application. Therefore,the types of devices connected to a PC may vary greatly from user touser depending in their individual requirements and may varysignificantly over time.

Although the variety of devices available for a PC may be greater thanon a gaming device, gaming devices still have unique device requirementsthat differ from a PC, such as device security requirements not usuallyaddressed by PCs. For instance, monetary devices, such as coindispensers, bill validators and ticket printers and computing devicesthat are used to govern the input and output of cash to a gaming devicehave security requirements that are not typically addressed in PCs.Therefore, many PC techniques and methods developed to facilitate deviceconnectivity and device compatibility do not address the emphasis placedon security in the gaming industry.

To address some of the issues described above, a number ofhardware/software components and architectures are utilized in gamingdevices that are not typically found in general purpose computingdevices, such as PCs. These hardware/software components andarchitectures, as described below in more detail, include but are notlimited to watchdog timers, voltage monitoring systems, state-basedsoftware architecture and supporting hardware, specialized communicationinterfaces, security monitoring and trusted memory.

For example, a watchdog timer is normally used in International GameTechnology (IGT) gaming devices to provide a software failure detectionmechanism. In a normally operating system, the operating softwareperiodically accesses control registers in the watchdog timer subsystemto “re-trigger” the watchdog. Should the operating software fail toaccess the control registers within a preset timeframe, the watchdogtimer will timeout and generate a system reset. Typical watchdog timercircuits include a loadable timeout counter register to enable theoperating software to set the timeout interval within a certain range oftime. A differentiating feature of the some preferred circuits is thatthe operating software cannot completely disable the function of thewatchdog timer. In other words, the watchdog timer always functions fromthe time power is applied to the board.

IGT gaming computer platforms preferably use several power supplyvoltages to operate portions of the computer circuitry. These can begenerated in a central power supply or locally on the computer board. Ifany of these voltages falls out of the tolerance limits of the circuitrythey power, unpredictable operation of the computer may result. Thoughmost modem general-purpose computers include voltage monitoringcircuitry, these types of circuits only report voltage status to theoperating software. Out of tolerance voltages can cause softwaremalfunction, creating a potential uncontrolled condition in the gamingcomputer. Gaming devices of the present assignee typically have powersupplies with tighter voltage margins than that required by theoperating circuitry. In addition, the voltage monitoring circuitryimplemented in IGT gaming computers typically has two thresholds ofcontrol. The first threshold generates a software event that can bedetected by the operating software and an error condition generated.This threshold is triggered when a power supply voltage falls out of thetolerance range of the power supply, but is still within the operatingrange of the circuitry. The second threshold is set when a power supplyvoltage falls out of the operating tolerance of the circuitry. In thiscase, the circuitry generates a reset, halting operation of thecomputer.

One standard method of operation for IGT slot machine game software isto use a state machine. Different functions of the game (bet, play,result, points in the graphical presentation, etc.) may be defined as astate. When a game moves from one state to another, critical dataregarding the game software is stored in a custom non-volatile memorysubsystem. This is critical to ensure the player's wager and credits arepreserved and to minimize potential disputes in the event of amalfunction on the gaming device.

In general, the gaming device does not advance from a first state to asecond state until critical information that allows the first state tobe reconstructed has been stored. This feature allows the game torecover operation to the current state of play in the event of amalfunction, loss of power, etc that occurred just prior to themalfunction. In at least one embodiment, the gaming device is configuredor designed to store such critical information using atomictransactions.

Generally, an atomic operation in computer science refers to a set ofoperations that can be combined so that they appear to the rest of thesystem to be a single operation with only two possible outcomes: successor failure. As related to data storage, an atomic transaction may becharacterized as series of database operations which either all occur,or all do not occur. A guarantee of atomicity prevents updates to thedatabase occurring only partially, which can result in data corruption.

In order to ensure the success of atomic transactions relating tocritical information to be stored in the gaming device memory before afailure event (e.g., malfunction, loss of power, etc.), it is preferablethat memory be used which includes one or more of the followingcriteria: direct memory access capability; data read/write capabilitywhich meets or exceeds minimum read/write access characteristics (suchas, for example, at least 5.08 Mbytes/sec (Read) and/or at least 38.0Mbytes/sec (Write)). Devices which meet or exceed the above criteria maybe referred to as “fault-tolerant” memory devices, whereas it is whichthe above criteria may be referred to as “fault non-tolerant” memorydevices.

Typically, battery backed RAM devices may be configured or designed tofunction as fault-tolerant devices according to the above criteria,whereas flash RAM and/or disk drive memory are typically notconfigurable to function as fault-tolerant devices according to theabove criteria. Accordingly, battery backed RAM devices are typicallyused to preserve gaming device critical data, although other types ofnon-volatile memory devices may be employed. These memory devices aretypically not used in typical general-purpose computers.

Thus, in at least one embodiment, the gaming device is configured ordesigned to store critical information in fault-tolerant memory (e.g.,battery backed RAM devices) using atomic transactions. Further, in atleast one embodiment, the fault-tolerant memory is able to successfullycomplete all desired atomic transactions (e.g., relating to the storageof gaming device critical information) within a time period of 200milliseconds (ms) or less. In at least one embodiment, the time periodof 200 ms represents a maximum amount of time for which sufficient powermay be available to the various gaming device components after a poweroutage event has occurred at the gaming device.

As described previously, the gaming device may not advance from a firststate to a second state until critical information that allows the firststate to be reconstructed has been atomically stored. This featureallows the game to recover operation to the current state of play in theevent of a malfunction, loss of power, etc that occurred just prior tothe malfunction. After the state of the gaming device is restored duringthe play of a game of chance, game play may resume and the game may becompleted in a manner that is no different than if the malfunction hadnot occurred. Thus, for example, when a malfunction occurs during a gameof chance, the gaming device may be restored to a state in the game ofchance just prior to when the malfunction occurred. The restored statemay include metering information and graphical information that wasdisplayed on the gaming device in the state prior to the malfunction.For example, when the malfunction occurs during the play of a card gameafter the cards have been dealt, the gaming device may be restored withthe cards that were previously displayed as part of the card game. Asanother example, a bonus game may be triggered during the play of a gameof chance where a player is required to make a number of selections on avideo display screen. When a malfunction has occurred after the playerhas made one or more selections, the gaming device may be restored to astate that shows the graphical presentation at the just prior to themalfunction including an indication of selections that have already beenmade by the player. In general, the gaming device may be restored to anystate in a plurality of states that occur in the game of chance thatoccurs while the game of chance is played or to states that occurbetween the play of a game of chance.

Game history information regarding previous games played such as anamount wagered, the outcome of the game and so forth may also be storedin a non-volatile memory device. The information stored in thenon-volatile memory may be detailed enough to reconstruct a portion ofthe graphical presentation that was previously presented on the gamingdevice and the state of the gaming device (e.g., credits) at the timethe game of chance was played. The game history information may beutilized in the event of a dispute. For example, a player may decidethat in a previous game of chance that they did not receive credit foran award that they believed they won. The game history information maybe used to reconstruct the state of the gaming device prior, duringand/or after the disputed game to demonstrate whether the player wascorrect or not in their assertion. Further details of a state basedgaming machine, recovery from malfunctions and game history aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,804,763, titled “High Performance BatteryBacked RAM Interface”, U.S. Pat. No. 6,863, 608, titled “Frame Captureof Actual Game Play,” U.S. application Ser. No. 10/243,104, titled,“Dynamic NV-RAM,” and U.S. application Ser. No. 10/758,828, titled,“Frame Capture of Actual Game Play,” each of which is incorporated byreference and for all purposes.

Another feature of gaming devices, such as IGT gaming computers, is thatthey often include unique interfaces, including serial interfaces, toconnect to specific subsystems internal and external to the gamingdevice. The serial devices may have electrical interface requirementsthat differ from the “standard” EIA serial interfaces provided bygeneral-purpose computers. These interfaces may include, for example,Fiber Optic Serial, optically coupled serial interfaces, current loopstyle serial interfaces, etc. In addition, to conserve serial interfacesinternally in the gaming device, serial devices may be connected in ashared, daisy-chain fashion where multiple peripheral devices areconnected to a single serial channel.

The serial interfaces may be used to transmit information usingcommunication protocols that are unique to the gaming industry. Forexample, IGT's Netplex is a proprietary communication protocol used forserial communication between gaming devices. As another example, SAS isa communication protocol used to transmit information, such as meteringinformation, from a gaming device to a remote device. Often SAS is usedin conjunction with a player tracking system.

IGT gaming devices may alternatively be treated as peripheral devices toa casino communication controller and connected in a shared daisy chainfashion to a single serial interface. In both cases, the peripheraldevices are preferably assigned device addresses. If so, the serialcontroller circuitry must implement a method to generate or detectunique device addresses. General-purpose computer serial ports are notable to do this.

Security monitoring circuits detect intrusion into an IGT gaming deviceby monitoring security switches attached to access doors in the gamingdevice cabinet. Preferably, access violations result in suspension ofgame play and can trigger additional security operations to preserve thecurrent state of game play. These circuits also function when power isoff by use of a battery backup. In power-off operation, these circuitscontinue to monitor the access doors of the gaming device. When power isrestored, the gaming device can determine whether any securityviolations occurred while power was off, e.g., via software for readingstatus registers. This can trigger event log entries and further dataauthentication operations by the gaming device software.

Trusted memory devices and/or trusted memory sources are preferablyincluded in an IGT gaming device computer to ensure the authenticity ofthe software that may be stored on less secure memory subsystems, suchas mass storage devices. Trusted memory devices and controllingcircuitry are typically designed to not enable modification of the codeand data stored in the memory device while the memory device isinstalled in the gaming device. The code and data stored in thesedevices may include authentication algorithms, random number generators,authentication keys, operating system kernels, etc. The purpose of thesetrusted memory devices is to provide gaming regulatory authorities aroot trusted authority within the computing environment of the gamingdevice that can be tracked and verified as original. This may beaccomplished via removal of the trusted memory device from the gamingdevice computer and verification of the secure memory device contents isa separate third party verification device. Once the trusted memorydevice is verified as authentic, and based on the approval of theverification algorithms included in the trusted device, the gamingdevice is enabled to verify the authenticity of additional code and datathat may be located in the gaming computer assembly, such as code anddata stored on hard disk drives. A few details related to trusted memorydevices that may be used in at least one embodiment described herein aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,685,567 from U.S. patent application Ser.No. 09/925,098, filed Aug. 8, 2001 and titled “Process Verification,”which is incorporated herein in its entirety and for all purposes.

In at least one embodiment, at least a portion of the trusted memorydevices/sources may correspond to memory which cannot easily be altered(e.g., “unalterable memory”) such as, for example, EPROMS, PROMS, Bios,Extended Bios, and/or other memory sources which are able to beconfigured, verified, and/or authenticated (e.g., for authenticity) in asecure and controlled manner.

According to a specific implementation, when a trusted informationsource is in communication with a remote device via a network, theremote device may employ a verification scheme to verify the identity ofthe trusted information source. For example, the trusted informationsource and the remote device may exchange information using public andprivate encryption keys to verify each other's identities. In anotherembodiment of at least one embodiment described herein, the remotedevice and the trusted information source may engage in methods usingzero knowledge proofs to authenticate each of their respectiveidentities.

Gaming devices storing trusted information may utilize apparatus ormethods to detect and prevent tampering. For instance, trustedinformation stored in a trusted memory device may be encrypted toprevent its misuse. In addition, the trusted memory device may besecured behind a locked door. Further, one or more sensors may becoupled to the memory device to detect tampering with the memory deviceand provide some record of the tampering. In yet another example, thememory device storing trusted information might be designed to detecttampering attempts and clear or erase itself when an attempt attampering has been detected.

Additional details relating to trusted memory devices/sources aredescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/078,966, entitled“Secured Virtual Network in a Gaming Environment”, naming Nguyen et al.as inventors, filed on Mar. 10, 2005, herein incorporated in itsentirety and for all purposes.

Mass storage devices used in a general purpose computer typically enablecode and data to be read from and written to the mass storage device. Ina gaming device environment, modification of the gaming code stored on amass storage device is strictly controlled and would only be enabledunder specific maintenance type events with electronic and physicalenablers required. Though this level of security could be provided bysoftware, IGT gaming computers that include mass storage devicespreferably include hardware level mass storage data protection circuitrythat operates at the circuit level to monitor attempts to modify data onthe mass storage device and will generate both software and hardwareerror triggers should a data modification be attempted without theproper electronic and physical enablers being present. Details using amass storage device that may be used with at least one embodimentdescribed herein are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,522,herein incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

In at least one embodiment, different methods, processes and/orapparatus may be provided which are operable to sense, calculate and/orrecord movement activity relating to a portable gaming device such as,for example, acceleration/deceleration, velocity, displacement,orientation, etc. In at least one embodiment, activity relating to themovements of a given portable gaming device along one or moredimensional axes (e.g., x-axis, y-axis, and/or z-axis) may be separatelyand/or independently tracked and/or recorded.

As used in this application, the term “acceleration” is intended toinclude both positive acceleration and negative acceleration (e.g.,deceleration). Additionally, as used in this application, the terms“unit” and “device” may be used interchangeably.

For example, in one embodiment, the portable gaming device may beconfigured or designed to include one or more mechanisms for monitoringthe unit's acceleration, evaluating the acceleration, and causing anemergency shut down of specific components if the unit's acceleration isdetected as being within a predetermined or predefined range of values.In some embodiments, at least a portion of these mechanisms may bedeployed in one or more systems which are external to the portablegaming device.

In at least one embodiment, one or more mechanisms may be provided forconverting the portable gaming device acceleration data to velocitymeasurement(s) for analysis and/or evaluation. In addition, the velocitymeasurements may be converted to displacement measurements for analysisand/or evaluation.

For example, in at least one embodiment, one or more processes,components and/or systems (e.g., implemented at the portable gamingdevice) may be operable record real-time data relating to variousparameters associated with the portable gaming device such as, forexample, one or more of the following (or combinations thereof):

-   -   Current time of day.    -   Current state of the portable gaming device.    -   Acceleration values.    -   Impact velocity.    -   Displacement traveled by the portable casino gaming unit before        impact. (which, for example, may be determined or approximated        based on other parameters such as, for example, acceleration,        initial velocity, duration of freefall, etc.).    -   Time of fall.    -   Location of gaming device (e.g., hotel lobby, casino floor, bar,        pool side etc.). In at least one embodiment, the floor        construction (e.g., concrete, wood, carpeted, steps, tabletop        etc.) may be a factor of the evaluation.    -   Movement of device and/or user prior to the occurrence of an        event (such as, for example, a freefall event). For example, was        the player walking with the portable gaming device prior to the        event, or was the portable gaming device stationary?    -   Etc.

In at least one embodiment, one or more mechanisms may be employed tomonitor various parameters associated with the portable gaming device inorder to detect a condition or event which may result in damage to theportable gaming device (such as, for example, detection of a freefallcondition at portable gaming device). In at least one embodiment, whensuch an event or condition is detected, one or more mechanisms may beconfigured or designed to respond by initiating one or more actions suchas, for example:

-   -   Disabling the portable gaming device from play.    -   Monitoring and recording real-time data relating to the        movements (e.g., freefall) of the portable gaming device.    -   Causing the portable gaming device to transmit (e.g., in        real-time or at periodic intervals) real-time data relating to        the movements of the portable gaming device (e.g., before,        during and/or after impact).    -   Causing the portable gaming device to transmit (e.g., via an RF        transceiver) selected information to an external computer system        before damage occurs at the portable gaming device (e.g., before        the portable gaming device impacts the floor).    -   Etc.

In at least one embodiment, one or more motion sensing devices such as,for example, MEMS accelerometer(s), MEMS Gyroscope(s), or the like maybe operatively coupled (e.g., via interconnect wiring) to the portablegaming device's emergency shut down circuitry and CPU. In at least oneembodiment, information generated by or provided by the motion sensingdevices may be used to evaluate the movements of the portable gamingdevice (such as, for example, acceleration, velocity, displacement,changes in orientation, etc.), for example, in order to determine if theunit has suffered abuse or mistreatment by a user.

For example, in one embodiment, an event management process running atthe portable gaming device may periodically or continuously monitor andanalyze acceleration data (and/or other movement data) relating to theportable gaming device. In at least one embodiment, if the processdetects that the portable gaming device is currently in a freefallcondition which meets or exceeds a predefined threshold criteria (e.g.,continuous freefall condition exceeding 0.2 seconds, displacement ofunit exceeds 10 inches during free fall condition), the process mayrespond by initiating one or more actions such as, for example one ormore of the following (or combinations thereof):

-   -   provide a shutdown signal to the CPU,    -   provide notification (and/or cause the portable gaming device to        provide notification) of the unit's freefall condition to an        external system,    -   transmit (and/or cause the portable gaming device to transmit)        current game state information (and/or other game/wager related        information) to an external system,    -   record (and/or cause the portable gaming device to record)        various data relating to the event/condition such as, for        example: the maximum distance the unit has fallen, the unit's        maximum velocity at impact, details relating to the impact        event, conditions or events which occurred at the portable        gaming device before the impact event (which, for example, may        be used to determine or reconstruct how the unit impacted the        floor),    -   etc.

In at least one embodiment, the event management process may be embodiedin an independent, self-supporting data preservation system (or datapreservation unit) which may be installed at the portable gaming device.In at least one embodiment, the data preservation system, when installedat the portable gaming device may be analogized to that of a Black Boxsystem which is installed at an airplane. For example, in at least oneembodiment, the data preservation system may be configured or designedto include its own processor, portable power source, and memory, and maybe further configured or designed to be able to continue to perform itsprogrammed functions and/or operations (such as, for example, thoseassociated with the event management process) even after the occurrenceof a partial or complete failure of the portable gaming device and/orone or more of its associated components/devices.

In at least one embodiment, recorded data relating the movements of theportable gaming device during one or more time intervals may besubsequently analyzed and/or reconstructed (e.g., using forensicanalysis techniques) in order to assess whether or not the unit hassuffered abuse or mistreatment by a user (e.g., did an accident causedthe unit to fall, or was the unit intentionally dropped, thrown, orotherwise abused by the user). In at least one embodiment, at least aportion of such recorded data may be obtained from data stored in thememory of the data preservation system associated with that portablegaming device.

In at least one embodiment, the phrase “portable gaming device movementdata” may include different types of data relating to the movementsand/or locations of the portable gaming device such as, for example, oneor more of the following (or combinations thereof): acceleration data,velocity data, displacement data, orientation data, location data, timedata, etc.

In at least one embodiment, an accident-related event (such as, forexample, the portable gaming device being accidentally knocked off atabletop and onto the floor) may provide a different pattern ofevent-related data than an abuse-related event (such as, for example, auser intentionally throwing the unit on the ground). In at least oneembodiment, one or more patterns of event-related data may becharacterized or expressed, for example, using histogram data relatingto one or more of the following: acceleration data, velocity data,displacement data, orientation data, etc. associated with the portablegaming device.

For example, a standard tabletop is about 30 inches above the floor.Thus, a portable gaming device accidentally falling off of such atabletop will only fall about 30 inches before it impacts the floor.Since the portable gaming device can accelerate only so fast under theinfluence of gravity, it is possible to calculate predicted datarelating to the portable gaming device at the time of impact such as,for example: the amount of time it will take the unit to fall the 30inches, the velocity of the unit at the time of impact, etc. In at leastone embodiment, calculation of the predicted data values may varydepending upon different assumptions made about the initial startingconditions of the event. For example, in the accidental “tabletop fall”example above, it may be assumed that the initial velocity of theportable gaming device (e.g., with respect to the vertical axis) iszero. Based on this assumption, it is possible to calculate one or moreprofiles or patterns of event data which are representative of predictedand/or actual conditions relating to the portable gaming device (e.g.,before, during and/or after the impact).

For instance, in the above example, a first “accidental tabletop fall”event data profile may be provided which includes specific values and/orspecific ranges of values (relating to various parameters associatedwith the portable gaming device) that one would expect to see if theportable gaming device were to accidentally fall from a tabletop orother location which is about 30 inches above the floor. An example ofsuch an “accidental tabletop fall event” data profile might specifyfreefall duration of the unit to be within the range of 0.40-0.39seconds, and might also specify a velocity of the unit at the time ofimpact to be within the range of 12.9-12.4 ft/sec. According todifferent embodiments, these parameter values may be based on actualdata, may be based on predicted or calculated data, and/or may be basedon some combination thereof.

In contrast, if a player were to first throw the portable gaming deviceup in the air, or drop the unit from a height that is greater than 30inches, the unit may accelerate to a higher speed, may impact the floorwith a higher velocity, and may take more time to fall. As a result, thepatterns of event-related data corresponding to either of these twoevents may be different from the “accidental tabletop fall” event dataprofile.

Additional details relating to patterns and/or profiles of event-relateddata are illustrated and described, for example, with respect to FIGS.11 and 12 of this application.

In at least one embodiment, when a specific event (such as, for example,an impact-related event) has been detected as occurring at a portablegaming device, actual event data relating to the specific event (suchas, for example, movement data corresponding to real-time conditions ofthe portable gaming device during the specific event) may be accessedand used to generate a specific event data pattern characterizing thatspecific event. In one embodiment, the specific event data pattern mayinclude histogram data representing real-time conditions relating to theacceleration, velocity, displacement, and/or orientation of the portablegaming device during the specific event. In one embodiment, a comparisonor analysis may be made between the specific event data pattern and oneor more other event data patterns (and/or event data profiles) in orderto assess, for example: whether the cause of the specific event wasaccident related or intentional, whether or not the portable gamingdevice has suffered abuse or mistreatment by a user, etc.

In at least one embodiment, the term “event” may be used to characterizeconditions and/or activities relating to a portable gaming device duringa selected time interval. For example, in the accidental “tabletop fall”example above, the time interval for this “drop” event may beselectively defined as a continuous time interval which begins at astarting time Ts (which, for example, may correspond to a time when theportable gaming device was at rest on the tabletop before being knockedoff), and which ends at an ending time Te (which, for example, maycorrespond to a time when the portable gaming device is at rest on thecasino floor). Based on this example time interval, the event datarelating to the “accidental tabletop fall” event may include portablegaming device movement data corresponding to conditions associated withthe portable gaming device: before freefall, during freefall, duringimpact, and after impact.

It will be appreciated, however, that different time intervals may beused to characterize different desired events or sub-events which mayoccur at the portable gaming device. For example, in one embodiment, thetime interval relating to a portable gaming device “freefall” event(such as, for example, when the portable gaming device is falling orexperiencing a freefall condition) may be defined, for example, as thecontinuous time interval during which the portable gaming device wasexperiencing a freefall condition (e.g., zero-gravity or substantiallyzero-gravity condition with respect to the vertical axis). In anotherembodiment, an “impact” event (such as, for example, when the portablegaming device experiences an impact or experiences a rapid decelerationwhich exceeds a minimum defined threshold value) may be defined, forexample, as a time interval (or a specific point in time) when theportable gaming device experienced the impact.

According to different embodiments, various different techniques may beused for generating and/or evaluating information relating to theacceleration, velocity, displacement, and/or orientation which aportable gaming device experienced during a fall/impact. One technique,for example, may include evaluation of the acceleration of the portablegaming device. For example, according to one embodiment, if it isdetected that the portable gaming device has undergone accelerationwhich meets or exceeds one or more specified minimum threshold criteria(such as, for example, a continuous acceleration condition which exceeds0.2 seconds, a continuous acceleration condition which exceeds aspecified amount of time corresponding to an amount of time that isrequired for an object to fall 10 inches under normal gravitationalforce, etc.), then emergency shut down circuitry at the portable gamingdevice may trigger a first trigger mode to initiate saving of all orselected data (e.g., game state data, wager data, critical data, and/orother data which may exist at the portable gaming device) innon-volatile memory. Upon detecting an impact event, the emergency shutdown circuitry may trigger a second trigger mode to initiate therecording of the maximum acceleration (e.g., with respect to the x-axis,y-axis, and/or z-axis), impact velocity (e.g., with respect to thex-axis, y-axis, and/or z-axis), and/or to calculate the approximatedisplacement (e.g., with respect to the x-axis, y-axis, and/or z-axis)of the portable gaming device during the fall.

In at least one embodiment, the emergency shutdown circuitry may beincluded or implemented as part of the data preservation system.

In at least one embodiment, a least one mechanism may be provided fortracking and evaluating various aspects relating to the handling of aportable gaming device. For example, in one embodiment, an eventtracking process may be provided for tracking and recording variousinformation relating to one or more portable gaming devices such as, forexample, one or more of the following (or combinations thereof):

-   -   the number of times a given portable gaming device has fallen;    -   the number of times a given portable gaming device has        experienced an impact event;    -   velocity of the portable gaming device at impact;    -   the maximum velocity recorded by the device;    -   location information;    -   timestamp information;    -   information relating to damage (e.g., current and/or prior        damage) to the portable gaming device;    -   information relating to repair(s) to the portable gaming device;    -   etc.

According to different embodiments, the event tracking process may beimplemented as a process running at the portable gaming device, may beimplemented as a process running at the data preservation system, or maybe implemented as a process running at an external or remote system orserver. In some embodiments, multiple different event tracking processesmay be concurrently implemented at different devices and/or systems ofthe casino network. In at least one embodiment, the information which istracked by the event tracking process may be used to evaluate weakcomponents, weak mounting of components and the like. Additionally, suchinformation may also be used to facilitate the redesign process of theportable gaming device.

In at least one embodiment, a portable gaming device may be operable toautomatically and dynamically select an appropriate mode of operationbased on various parameters and/or upon detection of specific events orconditions such as, for example, one or more of the following (orcombinations thereof):

-   -   the portable gaming device's current location;    -   identity of current user;    -   user input;    -   system override (e.g., emergency condition detected);    -   proximity to other portable gaming devices belonging to same        group or association;    -   proximity to specific objects, regions, zones, etc.;    -   etc.

Additionally, the portable gaming device may be operable toautomatically update or change its current operating mode to theselected mode of operation. The portable gaming device may also beadapted to automatically modify accessibility of user-accessiblefeatures and/or information in response to the updating of its currentmode of operation.

According to specific embodiments, associations may be made betweenportable gaming devices and players (and/or player positions at a gametable) such that each active portable gaming device is associated with aunique player or user during a given time period.

According to specific embodiments, the portable gaming device may alsobe adapted to perform other functions such as, for example, one or moreof the following (or combination thereof):

-   -   allowing a player conduct game play activities;    -   allowing a player to input game play instructions;    -   allowing a player to perform wagering activities (e.g.,        increasing bets, checking bets, performing side wagering/back        betting activities, etc.);    -   retrieving and/or displaying player tracking data;    -   retrieving and/or displaying player account data;    -   displaying game play assistance information;    -   displaying casino layout information;    -   displaying promotional information;    -   notify a player of messages;    -   displaying multimedia information from external sources;    -   displaying player's current location;    -   etc.

For example, in one implementation, a portable gaming device may beadapted to communicate with a remote server to access player accountdata, for example, to know how much funds are available to the playerfor betting/wagering.

In at least one implementation, the portable gaming device may alsoinclude other functionality such as that provided by PDAs, cell phones,and/or other mobile computing devices. Further, in at least oneimplementation, the portable gaming device may be adapted toautomatically and/or dynamically change its functionality depending onvarious conditions such as, for example: type of game being played; userinput; current location or position; detection of local electronicgaming tables/devices; etc.

In at least one embodiment, a portable gaming device may be implementedusing conventional mobile electronic devices (e.g., PDAs, cell phones,etc.) which have been specifically adapted to implement at least aportion of the portable gaming device functionalities described herein.

According to a specific embodiment, the portable gaming device may beadapted to implement at least a portion of the features associated withthe mobile game service system described in U.S. patent application Ser.No. 10/115,164, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 6,800,029, issued Oct. 4,2004, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for allpurposes. For example, in one embodiment, the portable gaming device maybe comprised of a hand-held game service user interface device (GSUID)and a number of input and output devices. The GSUID may include adisplay screen which may display a number of game service interfaces.These game service interfaces may be generated on the display screen bya microprocessor of some type within the GSUID. Examples of a hand-heldGSUID which may accommodate the game service interfaces are manufacturedby Symbol Technologies, Incorporated of Holtsville, N.Y.

In addition to the features described above, the portable gaming deviceof the present invention may also include additional functionality fordisplaying, in real-time, filtered information to the user based upon avariety of criteria such as, for example, geolocation information,casino data information, player tracking information, game playinformation, wager information, motion detection information, gestureinterpretation information, etc.

As used herein, the term “portable gaming device” may be used todescribe and variety of different types of electronic devices which mayinclude, but are not limited to, one or more of the following (orcombination thereof): mobile devices, wireless devices, portabledevices, handheld devices, etc.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate different embodiments of various motiondetection components which may be used for implementing various aspectsand/or features described herein.

For example, as shown in the example of FIG. 2A, motion detection device224 may include a plurality of accelerometers (e.g., 224 a, 224 b and224 c). In one embodiment, motion detection device 224 may include threesingle axis accelerometers. In another embodiment, motion detectiondevice 224 may include a dual axis accelerometer and a single axisaccelerometer.

In at least one embodiment, accelerometers 224 a, 224 b and 224 c may beoperable to detect movement of the portable gaming device by detectingacceleration along one or more respective sensing axes. For example, inone embodiment, a particular movement of the portable gaming device maycomprise a series, sequence and/or pattern of accelerations detected bythe accelerometers. In one embodiment, when the portable gaming deviceis tilted along a sensing axis of a particular accelerometer, thegravitational acceleration along the sensing axis may dynamicallychange. This change in gravitational acceleration may be detected by theaccelerometer and reflects the tilt of the device. Similarly,translation of the portable gaming device, or movement of the devicewithout rotation or tilt may also produce changes in acceleration alongone or more sensing axes, which may be detected by one or more of theaccelerometers.

In an example embodiment of FIG. 2A, motion detection device 224comprises: an x-axis accelerometer 224 a operable to detect movement ofthe device along an x-axis; a y-axis accelerometer 224 b operable todetect movement of the device along a y-axis, and a z-axis accelerometer224 c operable to detect movement of the device along a z-axis.According to different embodiments, the accelerometers they beimplemented using single-axis, double-axis, and/or triple-axisaccelerometers. In combination, accelerometers 224 a, 224 b and 224 care able to detect rotation and/or translation of a portable gamingdevice such as portable gaming device 20. In at least one embodiment,rotation and/or translation of device 20 may also serve as an input froma user to operate the device.

The use of three accelerometers for motion detection provides certainadvantages. For example, if only two accelerometers were used, themotion detector may not be able to disambiguate translation of theportable gaming device from tilt in the plane of translation. However,using a third, z-axis accelerometer (an accelerometer with a sensingaxis at least approximately perpendicular to the sensing axes of theother two accelerometers) enables many cases of tilt to be disambiguatedfrom many cases of translation.

FIG. 2B shows an alternate embodiment of various motion detectioncomponents which may be used for implementing various aspects and/orfeatures described herein. For example, as shown in the example of FIG.2B, motion detection device 250 may include, for example, accelerometercomponent(s) 254, gyro component(s) 258, camera component(s) 256,rangefinder component(s) 260, velocity transducer component(s) 264, etc.

In at least one embodiment, the velocity transducer component(s) 264 maybe used to calculate the acceleration of the portable gaming device. Forexample, according to different embodiments, electronic circuitry and/oralgorithmic processes applied to the output of the velocity transducermay be used to produce an acceleration output that is proportional tothe acceleration of the portable gaming device, for example. Forinstance, by computing the derivative of the output of the velocitytransducer, an acceleration data may be generated. In at least oneembodiment, such computed acceleration data may be compared to (or maybe used in place of) the output from an acceleration transducer. Inanother example, the output of a velocity transducer may be integratedto compute displacement data that may be used to calculate thedisplacement that the portable gaming device may have traveled during agiven time interval.

According to one embodiment, camera component(s) 256 may include aplurality of cameras which may comprise charge coupled device (CCD)cameras or other optical sensors. In one embodiment, the cameras mayprovide another way to detect movement of the portable gaming device(both tilt and translation). Additionally, by using at least twocameras, tilt and translation may be distinguished from each other.

In at least one embodiment, when the portable gaming device is rotated,the magnitude of the movement of the external world to the cameras maybe directly related to the magnitude of the rotation of the device.Thus, for example, in one embodiment, the amount of the rotation canaccurately be determined based on such movement of the external worldfrom the perspective of the cameras.

However, in at least one embodiment, when the device is translated, themagnitude of the translation may be related to both the magnitude of themovement of the external world to the cameras and to the distance to theobjects in the field of view of the cameras. Accordingly, in at leastsome embodiments, in order to accurately determine the amount oftranslation using cameras alone, it may be desirable to obtain some formof information concerning the distance to objects in the camera fieldsof view. In at least some embodiments, one or more rangefindercomponent(s) 260 may be used for this purpose (and/or for other desiredpurposes).

It will be appreciated that, even without such distance information, theoptical information provided by the cameras may be of significant value,for example, when correlated against the information from accelerometersand/or other sensors. For example, optical camera input may be used toinform the portable gaming device that no significant motion is takingplace. This could provide a solution to problems of drift which may beinherent in using acceleration data to determine absolute positioninformation for certain device functions.

As discussed above, distance information may be useful to determineamount of translation when cameras are being used to detect movement. Inthe example of FIG. 2B, such distance information may be provided viaone or more rangefinder components 260. According to specificembodiments, rangefinder component(s) 260 may comprise, for example,ultrasound rangefinders, laser rangefinders and/or any other suitabledistance measuring components. Other components may also be used todetermine distance information. For example, cameras with range findingcapabilities may be used. In one embodiment, multiple cameras may beutilized on the same side of the portable gaming device to function as arange-finder using stereopsis. In at least one embodiment, determineddistance information may allow for improved accuracy and/or explicitcomputation of detected translation and/or rotation.

As shown in the example of FIG. 2B, motion detection device 250 mayadditionally include one or more gyro component(s) 258 such as, forexample, one or more MEMS gyroscopes. In at least one embodiment, gyrocomponent(s) 258 may be used in combination with the other components ofmotion detection device 250 to provide increased accuracy in detectingmovement of the portable gaming device.

In at least one embodiment, the motion detection device may include oneor more processors (e.g., 262), which, for example, may be operable toprocesses data from the various motion detection components (e.g.,accelerometers, cameras, gyros, rangefinders, etc.) to produce an outputindicative of the motion of the portable gaming device. Processor 232may comprise a microprocessor, controller or any other suitablecomputing device or resource, such as a video analysis module forreceiving a video stream from each camera. In some embodiments, theprocessing described herein with respect to processor 232 of motiondetection device 250 may be performed by processor 16 of portable gamingdevice 10 or any other suitable processor, including processors locatedremote to the portable gaming device.

It will be appreciated that, in other embodiments, one or more motiondetection devices may include additional, fewer, or different componentsthan those illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B. For example, some embodimentsmay include a motion detector device with two or three accelerometersand one or more gyros; two or three accelerometers and one or morecameras; or two or three accelerometers and one or more rangefinders,etc. In addition, the location of the motion detection components on theportable gaming device may vary for different embodiments. For example,some embodiments may include cameras on different surfaces of a device,while other embodiments may include two cameras on the same surface.

Altering the type, number and location of components of motion detectiondevice 250 may affect the ability of motion detector to detect oraccurately measure various types of movement. As indicated above, thetype and number of components of motion detectors may vary in differentembodiments in order to fulfill particular needs. Fewer or less accuratecomponents may be used in particular embodiments when it is desired tosacrifice accuracy to reduce manufacturing cost of a portable gamingdevice with motion detection capabilities. For example, some portablegaming devices may only need to detect that the portable gaming devicehas been translated and may not need to detect exact amount of suchtranslation to perform desired functions of the portable gaming device.Such portable gaming devices may thus include a motion detector withaccelerometer and/or camera components but without rangefinder or othercomponent providing distance information. In particular embodiments,components described above, such as cameras and rangefinders, may alsobe used for other purposes by the portable gaming device than thosedescribed above relating to motion detection functionality.

FIG. 3 shows a simplified block diagram of various components which maybe used for implementing a data preservation system 300 in accordancewith a specific embodiment. In at least one embodiment, the datapreservation system 300 may be implemented as an integrated,self-contained device which is configured or designed to operateindependently from other systems/components of a portable gaming device.For example, in at least one embodiment, the data preservation system300 may be configured or designed to include its own processor, portablepower source, and memory, and may be further configured or designed tobe able to perform its programmed functions and/or operations evenduring times when the portable gaming device is in a powered off stateand/or even after the occurrence of a partial or complete failure of theportable gaming device and/or one or more of its associatedcomponents/devices.

As illustrated in the example of FIG. 3, data preservation system 300may include a variety of components, modules and/or systems forproviding functionality relating to one or more aspects describedherein. Other data preservation system embodiments (not shown) mayinclude different or other components than those illustrated in FIG. 3.For example, data preservation system 300 may include, but not limitedto, one or more of the following (or combination thereof):

-   -   At least one processor or CPU (306). In at least one        implementation, the processor(s) 306 may be operable to        implement features and/or functionality similar to other        processors described herein.    -   Memory 316, which, for example, may include volatile memory        (e.g., RAM), non-volatile memory (e.g., NV-RAM, disk memory,        FLASH memory, EPROMs, etc.), unalterable memory, and/or other        types of memory. In at least one implementation, the memory 316        may be operable to implement features and/or functionality        similar to other memory described herein.    -   Interface(s) 318 which, for example, may include wired        interfaces and/or wireless interfaces. In at least one        implementation, the interface(s) 318 may be operable to        implement features and/or functionality similar to other        interfaces described herein. For example, in at least one        embodiment, interface(s) 318 may include one or more interfaces        for communicating with other systems, processes, components        and/or devices of the portable gaming device in at least one        embodiment, interface(s) 318 may include one or more one or more        wireless communication interfaces, which, for example, may be        configured or designed to communicate with components of the        portable gaming device and/or with other external devices and/or        systems such as, for example, one or more of the following (or        combinations thereof): remote servers, electronic gaming        machines, other wireless devices (e.g., PDAs, other portable        gaming devices, cell phones, player tracking transponders,        etc.), base stations, etc. According to different embodiments,        such wireless communication may be implemented using one or more        wireless interfaces/protocols such as, for example, 802.11        (WiFi), 802.15 (including Bluetooth™), 802.16 (WiMax), 802.22,        Cellular standards such as CDMA, CDMA2000, WCDMA, Radio        Frequency (e.g., RFID), Infrared, Near Field Magnetics, etc.    -   At least one power source 304. In at least one implementation,        the power source may include at least one mobile power source        for allowing the data preservation system to operate in a mobile        environment. For example, in one implementation, the battery 304        may be implemented using a rechargeable type battery.        Additionally, in at least one embodiment, data preservation        system 300 may include a battery recharging system which, for        example, may be configured or designed to recharge the portable        gaming device's rechargeable battery. In one embodiment, the        battery recharging system may be configured or designed to        utilize power from an external power source (such as, for        example, power from the portable gaming device's battery, power        from other AC and/or DC power sources, etc.) for recharging the        data preservation system's power source 304.    -   One or more display(s) 308 (if desired). According to various        embodiments, such display(s) may be implemented using, for        example, LCD display technology, OLED display technology, and/or        other types of conventional display technology. In at least one        implementation, display(s) 308 may be adapted to be flexible or        bendable. Additionally, in at least one embodiment the        information displayed on display(s) 308 may utilize e-ink        technology (such as that available from E Ink Corporation,        Cambridge, Mass., www.eink.com), or other suitable technology        for reducing the power consumption of information displayed on        the display(s) 308. In some embodiments, it may be desirable to        not include a display at the data preservation system.    -   One or more user I/O Device(s) such as, for example, touch        keys/buttons, DIP switches, scroll wheels, cursors, touchscreen        sensors, etc.    -   One or more status indicators 302. For example, in one        implementation, one or more colored status indicators (such as,        for example, LEDs) may be included on one or more regions of the        data preservation system, and adapted to provide various        information such as, for example: communication status; data        preservation system health status; data preservation system        operating mode or state; battery power status; battery charging        status; error detection status; etc.    -   At least one motion detection component 314 for detecting motion        or movement of the data preservation system and/or for detecting        motion, movement, gestures and/or other input data from user. In        at least one embodiment, motion detection component(s) 314 may        include one or more of the following (or combinations thereof):        accelerometer component(s), gyro component(s), camera        component(s), rangefinder component(s), velocity transducer        component(s), etc.    -   Emergency shut down component(s) 308. In at least one        embodiment, the emergency shut down component(s) may be        configured or designed to analyze movement data relating to the        unit's movements (e.g., acceleration, velocity, displacement,        orientation, etc.), and initiate an emergency shut down of        specific components of the portable gaming device if the unit's        movement data is detected as meeting or exceeding predetermined        or predefined threshold criteria.    -   Event management components 310. In at least one embodiment,        event management components 310 may be configured or designed to        manage tracking and/or recording various information relating to        real-time events and/or conditions associated with the portable        gaming device. In at least one embodiment, event management        components 310 may also be operable to track and/or record        historical information relating to events and/or conditions        which have occurred at the portable gaming device such as, for        example, the number of times the portable gaming device has        experienced a freefall event/condition, the number of times a        given portable gaming device has experienced an impact event,        peak acceleration data (which, for example, may also include        associated timestamp data), etc.    -   etc.

In at least one embodiment, the data preservation system 300 may beoperable to periodically or continuously monitor and analyzeacceleration data (and/or other movement data) relating to the portablegaming device. Additionally, in at least one embodiment, if the datapreservation system detects that the portable gaming device is currentlyin a freefall condition which meets or exceeds a predefined thresholdcriteria (e.g., continuous freefall condition exceeding 0.2 seconds,displacement of unit exceeds 10 inches during free fall condition), itmay respond by initiating one or more actions such as, for example oneor more of the following (or combinations thereof):

-   -   provide a shutdown signal to the CPU and/or other components of        the portable gaming device;    -   provide notification (and/or cause the portable gaming device to        provide notification) of the unit's freefall condition to an        external system;    -   transmit (and/or cause the portable gaming device to transmit)        current game state information (and/or other game/wager related        information) to an external system;    -   record (and/or cause the portable gaming device to record)        various data relating to the event/condition such as, for        example: the maximum distance the unit has fallen, the unit's        maximum velocity at impact, details relating to the impact        event, conditions or events which occurred at the portable        gaming device before the impact event (which, for example, may        be used to determine or reconstruct how the unit impacted the        floor);    -   etc.

In some embodiments, the portable gaming device (and/or datapreservation system) may be configured or designed to periodicallytransmit selected information (such as, for example, movementinformation, gaming-related information, wager-related information,etc.) to an external or remote device/system, whereupon the informationmay then be preserved (e.g., stored in remote memory) and used forsubsequent analysis, if desired. In some embodiments, the portablegaming device (and/or data preservation system) may be configured ordesigned to transmit a continuous stream of desired information (e.g.,information relating to real-time conditions/events/states associatedwith the portable gaming device) to an external or remote device/system,whereupon the information may then be preserved (e.g., stored in remotememory) and used for subsequent analysis, if desired.

In at least one embodiment, recorded data relating the movements of theportable gaming device during one or more time intervals may besubsequently analyzed and/or reconstructed (e.g., using forensicanalysis techniques) in order to assess whether or not the unit hassuffered abuse or mistreatment by a user (e.g., did an accident causedthe unit to fall, or was the unit intentionally dropped, thrown, orotherwise abused by the user). In at least one embodiment, at least aportion of such recorded data may be obtained from data stored in thememory of the data preservation system associated with that portablegaming device.

In at least one embodiment, by recording or otherwise preserving thestate of a game as the portable gaming device is falling, the systemwill know the outcome of the game before the unit impacts the floor.This will eliminate a player receiving money that he/she does notdeserve. An example of this would be; if a player plays a game and heloses the game. He gets mad at the portable gaming device and throws iton the floor, or throws it up in the air. After impact, he returns it tothe cash out area and states that he won the game and got excited andaccidentally dropped the unit. Now the cash out area can then evaluatethe state of the game because the state of the game was transmitted viaRF to the system computer and the state of the game was also storedbefore the portable gaming device hit the floor. The portable gamingdevice or the system computer may evaluate the acceleration, velocityand the displacement that the portable gaming device experienced in thefall.

In at least one embodiment, the motion detection component 314 mayinclude one or more motion detection sensors such as, for example, MEMS(Micro Electro Mechanical System) accelerometers, that can detect theacceleration and/or other movements of the data preservation systemand/or portable gaming device. Examples of suitable MEMS accelerometersmay include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following (orcombination thereof): Si-Flex™ SF1500L Low-Noise Analog 3 gAccelerometer (available from Colibrys, Inc., Stafford, Tex.); MXC6202Dual Axis Accelerometer (available from MEMSIC, Inc. 800, North Andover,Mass.); ADXL330 iMEMS Accelerometer (available from Analog Devices,Norwood, Mass.); etc.

In at least some embodiments, other types of motion detection componentsmay be used such as, for example, inertial sensors, MEMS gyros, and/orother motion detection components described herein. For example, MEMSaccelerometers may be particularly suited for applications involvingrelatively large degrees of vibration, impact, and/or fast motion. MEMSgyros are great for may be particularly suited for applicationsinvolving orientation sensing and/or slow movements.

In some embodiments the portable gaming device and the data preservationsystem (e.g., installed at the portable gaming device) may each includetheir own respective motion detection components which function andoperate independently from each other. In some embodiments, the datapreservation system may be operable to utilize motion data provided byexternal motion detected in components (such as, for example, theportable gaming device's motion detection components).

In at least one embodiment, motion detection component 314 may includeat least one “Spring Board Accelerometer”. One embodiment of the SpringBoard Accelerometer may be implemented in a manner similar to that of adiving board, in that it may be attached at one end and may be allowedto bend (under the influence of gravity). If desired, a specified amountof mass may be added to the free end.

In at least one embodiment, the free end of the “spring board” may beimplemented as movable plate of a capacitor with the other plate of thecapacitor being fixed (e.g., to a frame or body). Such a Spring BoardAccelerometer embodiment may be used to measure the influence ofgravity. For example, according to one embodiment, as gravity bends theboard, the distance between the plates of the capacitor decreases (e.g.,the plates get closer to each other), and the capacitance increases[e.g., Capacitance=(k*Area of plates)/distance between plates]. Forexample, if the accelerometer is stationary (e.g., lying on a table withthe spring board parallel with the table top) then the output of thatboard may be +1 g and a first output signal (e.g., DC voltage signal)may be output from the device (e.g., using electronics operable tomeasure the capacitance of the plates, and/or to generate the DC outputsignal(s)). If the spring board is subsequently turned over, the outputof that board will be at −1 g, and the DC voltage output signal willalso change polarity. As the board is rotated about an axis parallel tothe board, the output may dynamically change from +1 g to −1 g, with 0 gbeing the point where the board is perpendicular to the force ofgravity. In one embodiment, a graph of this function may be expressed asa cosine function from 0 to pi.

According to specific embodiments, spring board accelerometers may besuitable for use as sensors of vibration. For example, in one embodimentthe spring board accelerometer(s) may be optimized to detect vibrationfrequencies of less than 400 Hz for use in motiondetection/interpretation analysis. In one embodiment, it may bepreferable that the frequency of detected vibration(s) (e.g., for use ingesture interpretation analysis) is below the resonance frequency of thespring board. For example, in at least one embodiment, the length of thespring board and the mass of the spring board may be configured ordesigned such that the frequency of resonance of the board is greaterthan 400 Hz.

Spring board accelerometers may also be suitable for use as sensors ofimpacts since, for example, such devices may be configured or designedto detect and withstand relatively fast accelerations (e.g., resultingfrom free fall conditions) in one or more planes. For example, fastacceleration in one plane may result in the board bending until itslimits are encountered. Such devices may be suitable for use as sensorsfor measuring tilt of an object. For example, in one embodiment, aspring board accelerometer may be configured or designed to provide anoutput DC voltage that is proportional to the angle of tilt,acceleration, rotation of an object such as, for example, a portablegaming device or a player's hand or arm.

In at least one embodiment, the data preservation system may be furtheradapted to transmit various types of information to externaldevices/systems such as, for example: portable gaming devices, gamingmachines, game tables, and/or other devices or systems of the gamingnetwork. Examples of the various types of different information whichmay be transmitted by the data preservation system may include, but arenot limited to, one or more of the following (or combinations thereof):

-   -   portable gaming device state information;    -   historical game data;    -   critical information;    -   game state data;    -   wager related data;    -   information relating to events, conditions and/or movements        occurring at the portable gaming device (such as, for example,        time data, location data, acceleration/deceleration data,        velocity data, displacement data, orientation data, etc);    -   information which may be desired and/or used for reconstructing        conditions and/or events at the portable gaming device before,        during and/or after the detected event or condition;    -   data preservation system device ID;    -   portable gaming device ID (e.g., for use in identifying the        portable gaming device which transmitted information);    -   user ID information (e.g., for use in identifying the user        operating the portable gaming device);

According to one implementation, analog acceleration data output fromthe accelerometers may be digitized and fed into a multiplexer andtransmitted to an external device or system such as, for example, agaming machine, a game table, a remote server, etc.

According to various embodiments, game tables, gaming machines, and/orother devices which are operable to receive communication from the datapreservation system and/or portable gaming device may include at leastone receiver for receiving information transmitted from the datapreservation system and/or portable gaming device. In one embodiment,the receiver may be implemented as a multi-channel multi-frequencyreceiver adapted to receive signals from a plurality of differentportable gaming devices.

In at least one embodiment, a portable gaming device may be an extensionof an existing video slot casino machine such as, for example, IGT's“Game King Video Slot” gaming machine, or it may be a stand alone casinogaming machine.

The difference would be that in the extended mode of operation theportable gaming device would reflect the functions that are beingpreformed on the IGT “Game King Video Slot” machine and provide inputsback to the stand alone gaming machine. In the stand alone mode it wouldperform all the same functions that the IGT “Game King Video Slot”machine would perform and would not need the support of the stand alonegaming machine.

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram of an alternate example of aportable gaming device 400 in accordance with a specific embodiment. Asillustrated in the example of FIG. 4, portable gaming device 400 mayinclude a variety of components, modules and/or systems for providingfunctionality relating to one or more aspects described herein. Forexample, as illustrated in FIG. 4, portable gaming device 400 mayinclude one or more of the following:

-   -   memory storage units such as ROM 422, RAM 423, hard drives 424,        solid state drives 425, etc.;    -   a display unit controller 426 operable to generate a video        images;    -   a touch screen controller 427 that controls a touch sensitive        overlay 414 for a touch input device;    -   audio speaker system 428 for generating sound;    -   push button controller 429 for control and game state changes;    -   a finger print reader 430 (and/or other biometric reader) for        user identification;    -   a wireless player tracking reader 431 for player accounting;    -   a wireless transceiver 432 for communication purposes;    -   a rechargeable battery 433 for a power source;    -   emergency shut down circuitry 434;    -   one or more accelerometers 435;    -   one or more velocity transducers 436.    -   etc.

FIG. 5 shows an example schematic diagram of shut down comparatorcircuitry in accordance with a specific embodiment.

FIG. 6 shows an example schematic diagram of a shut down intentionalcomparator circuitry in accordance with a specific embodiment.

In at least one embodiment, the data preservation system may includesome or all of the circuitry illustrated in the schematic diagrams ofFIG. 5 and/or FIG. 6.

In at least one embodiment, the shut down comparator circuitry of FIG. 5and/or FIG. 6 may be configured or designed to perform one or moreoperations described or referenced herein, such as, for example, one ormore operations which may be performed or initiated by data preservationsystem and/or portable gaming device.

In the example of FIG. 5, iMEMS accelerometer U1 may be implementedusing an iMEMS accelerometer such as the ADXL 330 iMEMS accelerometermanufactured by Analog Devices of Norwood, Mass. In one embodiment, theiMEMS accelerometer may be powered by a power source such as, forexample, a VDC +3 volt supply. In the example of FIG. 5, the outputs ofthe accelerometer (e.g., one for each axis of acceleration) arerepresented as XOUT, YOUT, and ZOUT. Capacitors C1, C2 and C3 functionas low pass filter(s) (e.g., for use with the internal resistance withinaccelerometer U1), that may be used to eliminate high frequency noisethat, for example, may be generated within the iMEMS accelerometer.

According to one embodiment, the scaling of the iMEMS accelerometer maybe about 300 mV/g and may be applied to one or more inverting amplifierswith a gain (e.g., in one embodiment, a gain of about 10×). Examples ofsuch amplifiers are U2A, U2B and U2C. In one embodiment, the DC outputfrom the iMEMS accelerometer is equal to about ½ the 3.0 VDC supply. Inone embodiment, this DC voltage may be eliminated from the amplifiergain(s) via biasing opamp U2D. In one embodiment, biasing opamp U2D maybe configured or designed to provide ½ the supply voltage to thepositive pins of the gain amplifiers. In at least one embodiment, thethree outputs X 3 V/g, Y 3 V/g and Z 3 V/g may have a scale factor ofabout 3 V/g with an offset of ½ of the supply voltage. In oneembodiment, these outputs may be supplied to AC and/or DC comparatorssuch as those shown, for example, in FIG. 6.

In the example embodiment of FIG. 6, circuit portion 600 may beconfigured or designed to include two circuits which may function aswindow comparators. In at least one embodiment, one of the windowcomparator circuits (e.g., 601) may be configured or designed as a DCwindow comparator, which, for example, may be connected to the outputs X3 V/g, Y 3 V/g and Z 3 V/g represented in FIG. 5. In at least oneembodiment, another window comparator circuit (e.g., 603) may beconfigured or designed as an AC window comparator, which, for example,may be connected to the outputs (e.g., X 3 V/g, Y 3 V/g and Z 3 V/g) ofFIG. 5 via one or more capacitors.

In at least one embodiment, the reference voltage for the windowcomparators is supplied by a voltage divider circuit which includesresistors R9, R10, and R11. These resistors that may be adjusted by thegaming processor provide desired threshold levels for the windowcomparators.

In at least one embodiment, the window comparators may be configured ordesigned to operate in such a way that if one or more specified inputs(e.g., X 3 V/g, Y 3 V/g and/or Z 3 V/g) are at 1.5 volts (and/or have avalue which indicates a zero g condition), the SHUTDOWN output signalmay be set to high, which, for example, may result in one or more of thefollowing (or combinations thereof): signaling the processor to initiatean emergency state of operation; causing recording and/or storing ofdesired data which, for example, may be used for evaluation of thefalling portable gaming device; etc.

FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate different example embodiments of receiversystems which may be utilized in one or more systems described hereinsuch as, for example, a portable gaming device, a gaming system, acommunication relay, and/or other systems/devices of a casino gamingnetwork.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7A, receiver system portion 700 mayinclude an antenna 701 and receiver 702 operable for receiving wirelessdata communications from one or more portable gaming devices (and/orother wireless devices). According to different embodiments, receiver702 may be operable to receive wireless data which has been transmittedusing a variety of different wireless communication protocols and/ormodulation schemes (such as those described herein). In one embodiment,output from receiver 702 may be provided to demodulator/decoder 704,which may be operable to identify and/or extract various types of datawhich have been embedded or encoded in received wireless communicationsignals. In one embodiment, output from demodulator/decoder 704 may beprovided, e.g., via communication interface 706, to a master controller710 (and/or other processor(s)) of a desired gaming system. In at leastone embodiment, wireless communication with receiver system portion 700may be achieved using one or more of the following types of protocolsand/or modulation schemes (and/or combinations thereof): CDMA, TDMA,FDMA, frequency modulation, amplitude modulation, baseband modulation,etc. As illustrated in FIG. 7B, receiver system portion 750 may includeone or more antennas 751 a-n and one or more receivers 752 a-n operablefor receiving wireless data communications from one or more portablegaming devices (and/or other wireless devices). According to differentembodiments, receivers 752 a-n may be operable to receive wireless datawhich has been transmitted using a variety of different wirelesscommunication protocols and/or modulation schemes (such as thosedescribed herein). Additionally, the use of multiple receivers allowsfor simultaneous reception of multiple different wireless communicationsignals (e.g., sent from different portable gaming devices).

In one embodiment, output from receivers 752 a-n may be provided todemodulator/decoders 754 a-n, which may be operable to identify and/orextract various types of data which have been embedded or encoded inreceived wireless communication signals. In one embodiment, output fromdemodulator/decoder 754 a-n may be provided, e.g., via communicationinterface 756, to a master controller 760 (and/or other processor(s)) ofa desired gaming system. In at least one embodiment, wirelesscommunication with receiver system portion 750 may be achieved using oneor more of the following types of protocols and/or modulation schemes(and/or combinations thereof): CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, frequency modulation,amplitude modulation, baseband modulation, etc.

It will be appreciated that the various components features andcapabilities of the different receiver system embodiments describedherein may also be incorporated into different gaming system embodimentsin order to provide such gaming system and embodiments with similarfeatures and/or capabilities.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of network portion 800, which may be usedfor illustrating various aspects and/or features described herein. In atleast one embodiment, portable gaming device 802 may be operable tocommunicate with one or more gaming systems, gaming devices, gametables, portable gaming devices, and/or other systems/devices of agaming network.

As shown in the example of FIG. 8, portable gaming device 802 maycommunicate with one or more gaming device(s)/system(s) 812 and/or oneor more remote device/system(s) 806 (e.g., via communication network804).

According to one embodiment, portable gaming device 802 may detectmotion of the portable gaming device, and may generate movement data viaone or more motion detection components, such as, for example,accelerometers, cameras, rangefinders, gyros, etc. In at least oneembodiment, movement data relating to a portable gaming device may beprocessed at the portable gaming device and/or at remotedevices/systems. Particular databases (such as, for example, gesture andgesture mapping databases, event-related profile databases, etc.) may beaccessed to determine any appropriate actions to be implemented inresponse to the analyzed movement data.

In at least one embodiment, portable gaming device may also be operableto transmit, to one or more other devices/systems, various other typesof data or information such as, for example: historical game data,critical information, game state data, wager related data, portablegaming device state information, and/or other data or information whichmay be desired and/or used for reconstructing conditions and/or eventsat the portable gaming device (e.g., before, during and/or after a givenevent or condition).

In at least some embodiments, gaming device/system 812 and/or remotedevice/system 806 may be operable to process the information receivedfrom portable gaming device 802, for example, in order to determine oneor more intended functions or operations to be performed based on themovement data. In some embodiments, the information transmitted byportable gaming device 802 may include information indicating oridentifying the other device(s)/system(s) which are intended to receivespecific portions of information transmitted from the portable gamingdevice. It will be appreciated that other embodiments may includedifferent number(s) of devices and/or system(s) of varying types whichmay be responsive to instructions/information received from portablegaming device 802.

In some embodiments, the intended recipient (e.g., gaming device/system812, remote device/system 806, etc.) of the information transmitted fromthe portable gaming device may be dynamically and/or automaticallyselected based upon predetermined criteria such as, for example:proximity, authentication, user identity, device/system identity, userpreferences, etc.

According to specific embodiments, portable gaming device 802 may beoperable to detect its movements or motion activities via its motiondetection components, and may be operable to modify its behavior in someway according to the motion detected. Further, in at least someembodiments, at least some portable gaming devices may be operable tomodel of their particular environments and subsequently modify theirbehaviors based on such environments.

As an example, if a portable gaming device changes its behavior whenmoved according to a particular gesture that may be considered sensingor detecting a particular motion and reacting based on the motiondetected. However, in at least some embodiments, the interpretation ofthe portable gaming device motion (and subsequent responses/reactions)may be dependent upon the particular environment in which the portablegaming device is located.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming device may be operableto detect environmental conditions associated with a location of theportable gaming device. Additionally, the portable gaming device may beoperable to initiate environmental modeling behaviors based upondetected environmental events and/or conditions. In at least oneembodiment, modeling an environment may involve sensing or detecting apattern of motion (or lack thereof), matching it to a predefined set ofenvironmental conditions, and/or modifying the behavior of the portablegaming device based on the modeled environment. The behavior implementedbased on the environment modeled may also change based on a particularapplication in use or in focus. In some cases, the portable gamingdevice may change its sensitivity to particular motions based on theenvironment modeled.

As an example, a portable gaming device may recognize (e.g., throughaccelerometers and/or other motion detection components) that it is atrest on an approximately horizontal surface. Such recognition may resultfrom a determination that the portable gaming device is not moving, orstill, with a static 1 g of acceleration orthogonal to a surface. Theportable gaming device may be able to differentiate resting on a tablefrom resting in a user's hand, for example, because a user's handtypically will not be able to hold the portable gaming device perfectlystill. The portable gaming device may, in response, behave in a certainmanner according to the recognition that it is at rest on anapproximately horizontal surface.

In at least one embodiment, if portable gaming device 802 recognizedthat it was lying at rest on a table, it may power off (or go intostandby mode or power save mode) in response to determining that it hasbeen lying in such position for a specified amount of time. As anotherexample, a cellular phone in a vibrate mode may vibrate more gently ifit recognizes it is on a table upon receipt of a call or upon any otherevent that may trigger vibration of the phone. In some embodiments, theportable gaming device may recognize its orientation while lying on atable such that it may behave in one manner when lying in a “face down”position (e.g., it may power off the display), while it may behave in adifferent manner when lying in a non-face down position. For example, ifportable gaming device 802 includes cellular phone functionality, it mayenter a speaker mode when it is on a call, and may recognize that it hasbeen placed by a user in a “face up” position on a table while on thecall. If, on the other hand, the cellular phone is engaged in an activecall and is placed face down on the table, it may enter a mute mode.

As another example, portable gaming device 802 may recognize through abrief period of approximately 0 g that it is in free-fall, and inresponse may behave accordingly to reduce damage and/or to prevent lossof data, which, for example, may be caused as a result of the portablegaming device impacting with the ground or other surface. Such behaviormay include, for example, powering down chips and/or hard drives,retracting lenses, applying covers, preserving data in non-volatilememory, transmitting selected data or information to one or moreexternal or remote devices, etc.

In particular embodiments, other devices that do not otherwise detectmotion for input may also be able to model their environment and tobehave based on the environment modeled. As an additional example,acceleration patterns may be detected to recognize that a portablegaming device 802 is in a moving environment (e.g., being held by a userwho is moving about the casino) and may adjust various sensitivities,threshold and/or other characteristics to enable better performance ofthe portable gaming device in that environment.

FIG. 9 shows an example embodiment of a state diagram 900 which may beused for implementing various aspects or features described herein. Inat least one embodiment, a least a portion of the operations and/oractivities associated with state diagram 900 may be performed orimplemented by one or more systems or components of a portable gamingdevice. In some embodiments, a least a portion of the operations and/oractivities associated with state diagram 900 may be performed orimplemented by a data preservation system such as, for example, datapreservation system 300 of FIG. 3. Additionally, according to differentembodiments, the various operations and/or activities associated withstate diagram 900 may be implemented via hardware, software, and/or somecombination thereof.

For purposes of illustration, a description of state diagram 900 willnow be provided by way of example. In this particular example it isassumed that a least a portion of the operations and/or activitiesassociated with state diagram 900 are performed or implemented by aportable gaming device which includes a data preservation system. Forpurposes of illustration, it is assumed in the example below that theoperations and/or activities associated with state diagram 900 areperformed or implemented by a portable gaming device. However, it willbe appreciated that, in at least some embodiments, the operations and/oractivities associated with state diagram 900 may be performed orimplemented by a data preservation system.

As illustrated in the example of FIG. 9, state diagram 900 may include aplurality of different states including, for example, an initializationstate 902, a monitor state 904, an evaluation state 906, an emergencystate 912, etc. In at least one embodiment, each of the different states902, 904, 906, 912, may relate to (or be descriptive of) a differentstate of operation of the portable gaming device (and/or datapreservation system).

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming device may be configuredor designed to allow for multiple different states of operation to beconcurrently active. For example, during a given time interval, theportable gaming device may have associated therewith a currently activegame state (e.g., relating to a current game state of a game beingplayed at the portable gaming device), and a currently active eventmanagement state (e.g., which may correspond to one of the differentstates 902, 904, 906, 912 illustrated in the example state diagram ofFIG. 9). Additionally, in at least one embodiment, each different activestate at the portable gaming device may be independent from the otherconcurrently active states at the portable gaming device.

According to one embodiment, during initialization state 902, theportable gaming device (and/or data preservation system) may perform anydesired initialization procedures.

In one embodiment, the successful completion of the initializationprocedures may trigger 901 advancement to monitor state 904.

In at least one embodiment, while in the monitor state 904, the portablegaming device (and/or selected systems, devices, components associatedtherewith) may be operable to perform one or more of the following (orcombinations thereof):

-   -   Set or update a current sampling interval value relating to the        time period or time interval for taking periodic sample        measurements of movement activity relating to the portable        gaming device. According to different embodiments, while in the        monitor state 904, the motion detection sampling interval value        may be set to a value within the range of 25 milliseconds to 5        seconds. For example, in one embodiment, while in the monitor        state 904, the motion detection sampling interval value may be        set to a value of 0.5 seconds, which may result in sample        measurements of movement activity of the portable gaming device        being taken every 0.5 seconds. In at least one embodiment, the        sample measurements of movement activity may be used to generate        portable gaming device movement data, which, for example, may        include one or more of the following (or combinations thereof):        acceleration data, velocity data, displacement data, orientation        data, location data, time data, etc.    -   Monitor the portable gaming device movement data for detection        of any potentially significant events and/or conditions.    -   Monitor the portable gaming device movement data for detection        of any critical events and/or conditions.    -   Periodically record selected portions of the portable gaming        device movement data.    -   Compare different samples of the portable gaming device movement        data (e.g., which were taken at different time intervals) to        identify or determine any changes or differences (e.g., deltas)        between the data samples.    -   Capture acceleration data within the Monitor state in a rolling        buffer (e.g., so that pre-event information may be recorded and        linked to an appropriate event information profile if/when a        critical or potentially significant event is detected. In one        embodiment, this information may be used in determining the        acceleration state of the portable gaming device before the        event (e.g., before the occurrence of a free fall event). In at        least one embodiment, a rolling buffer may be operable to allow        new information to be continuously (or periodically) recorded        concurrently while previously recorded information is        continuously (or periodically) deleted from the buffer.    -   Etc.

In at least one embodiment, potentially significant events and/orconditions may include, for example, any detected events and/orconditions: which meet or exceed specified threshold criteria; which mayresult in damage to the portable gaming device; and/or which may resultin loss of information associated with the portable gaming device. In atleast one embodiment, the portable gaming device movement data mayinclude real-time or substantially real-time movement data relating tothe portable gaming device.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming device may continue toremain in the monitor state 904 while no potentially significant eventsand/or conditions are detected (903). For example, while the portablegaming device is at rest on a table or other surface, it is likely that,under normal circumstances, there will be no potentially significantevents and/or conditions which are detected at the portable gamingdevice. Accordingly, in at least one embodiment, during such times theportable gaming device may remain in the monitor state 904.

In at least one embodiment, while in the monitor state 904, thedetection of a potentially significant event or condition may trigger905 a change to evaluation state 906. Additionally, in at least oneembodiment, while in the monitor state 904, the detection of a criticalevent or condition may trigger 919 a change to emergency state 912.

In at least one embodiment, potentially significant events or conditionsmay include, but are not limited to, one or more of the followingevents/conditions (or combinations thereof):

-   -   A detected change of an acceleration value (e.g., with respect        to the x, y, and/or z-axis) meeting or exceeding a predetermined        non-critical threshold value, but not meeting or exceeding a        critical threshold value. For example, in one embodiment, if all        (or selected) acceleration values of outputs X, Y, and Z are at        a level of about 1.5 volts and/or not greater than about 0.75        volts (e.g., with a scale factor of 3 V/g) then a non-critical        event/condition may be indicated, and one or more action(s) may        be initiated in response. For example, in at least one        embodiment, output levels meeting such criteria may indicate        that the device may have fallen or was dropped a small distance.        In one embodiment, data relating to the levels of acceleration        may be saved and/or transmitted to a remote system and used for        further analysis. In at least one embodiment, an audio and/or        visual signal may be produced by the portable gaming device, for        example, to provide warning the user of the detected        event/condition. In one embodiment, this signal may be in the        form of audio beeps, sirens and the like. Visual signals may be        in the form of warning lights, blinking lights, blinking LEDs,        screen blanking, screen blinking, screen dimming, and the like.        In one embodiment, such signaling events may last for one or        more predetermined time intervals.    -   A detected change of an acceleration value (e.g., with respect        to an x, y, or z-axis) from a substantially 1 g value to a        substantially 0 g value. For example, if all (or selected)        acceleration values X, Y, and Z are at or less than a level of        about 0.75 volts (e.g., with a scale factor of 3 V/g), then a        potentially significant or critical event may be indicated and        one or more action(s) may be initiated in response. For example,        in at least one embodiment, output levels meeting such criteria        may indicate that the device is falling (but may not yet have        fallen a sufficient amount of time and/or distance to qualify as        a critical event). In one embodiment, the duration of this        event/condition (and/or duration of the time the device is in        this mode or state of operation) may be used to determine the        distance that the unit has fallen. When a predetermined amount        of time has elapse (e.g., such as, for example, the amount of        time it would take for the portable gaming device to fall a        distance of about 10 inches), this may trigger re-classification        of the event/condition as a critical event/condition.    -   Etc.

In at least one embodiment, a critical event or condition may include,but are not limited to, one or more of the following events/conditions(or combinations thereof):

-   -   A detected change of an acceleration value (e.g., with respect        to the x, y, and/or z-axis) meeting or exceeding a predetermined        critical threshold value (e.g., acceleration value exceeding 1 g        detected on x, y, and/or z-axis).    -   Detection of a 0 g (or substantially 0 g) acceleration condition        (e.g., with respect to the x, y, and/or z-axis) having a        duration which exceeds a minimum threshold time interval (e.g.,        continuous 0 g acceleration condition duration exceeding about        0.2 seconds)    -   Etc.

In at least one embodiment, while in the evaluation state 906, theportable gaming device (and/or selected systems, devices, componentsassociated therewith) may be operable to perform one or more of thefollowing (or combinations thereof):

-   -   Set or update a current sampling interval value relating to the        time period or time interval for taking sample measurements of        movement activity relating to the portable gaming device.        According to different embodiments, while in the evaluation        state 906, the motion detection sampling interval value may be        increased (relative to the monitor state), for example, in order        to obtain additional data points for more accurate analysis of        the current events/conditions at the portable gaming device. For        example, while in the evaluation state 906, the motion detection        sampling interval value may be set to a value within the range        of 20-35 milliseconds such as, for example, about 25 msec.    -   Monitor the portable gaming device movement data for detection        of any potentially significant events and/or conditions.    -   Monitor the portable gaming device movement data for detection        of any critical events and/or conditions.    -   Periodically store selected portions of the portable gaming        device movement data in non-volatile memory.    -   Acquire and/or store selected information relating to portable        gaming device in non-volatile memory. According to specific        embodiments, the selected information may include, but are not        limited to, one or more of the following (or combinations        thereof): historical game data, critical information, game state        data, wager related data, portable gaming device state        information, portable gaming device movement data, and/or other        data or information which may be desired and/or used for        reconstructing prior conditions, events, and/or states at the        portable gaming device.    -   Transmit selected information to one or more remote or external        devices. According to specific embodiments, the selected        information may include, but are not limited to, one or more of        the following (or combinations thereof): historical game data,        critical information, game state data, wager related data,        portable gaming device state information, portable gaming device        movement data, and/or other data or information which may be        desired and/or used for reconstructing prior conditions, events,        and/or states at the portable gaming device.    -   Compare different samples of the portable gaming device movement        data (e.g., which were taken at different time intervals) to        identify or determine any changes or differences (e.g., deltas)        between the data samples.    -   Compare samples of the portable gaming device movement data to        one or more predefined event data profiles.    -   Automatically power-up the portable gaming device (e.g., if        portable gaming device is in power-off, hibernate and/or standby        mode).    -   Automatically power-up selected components/devices of the        portable gaming device.    -   Etc.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming device may continue toremain in the evaluation state 906 while one or more potentiallysignificant events and/or conditions are detected (909). For example,while the portable gaming device is being held or carried by a user, itis likely that will be detected one or more potentially significantevents and/or conditions. Accordingly, in at least one embodiment,during such times the portable gaming device may remain in theevaluation state 906.

In at least one embodiment, while in the evaluation state 906, thedetection of a critical event or condition may trigger 911 a change toemergency state 912. Additionally, in at least one embodiment, while inthe evaluation state 906, non-detection of any potentially significantevents and/or conditions may trigger 907 a change to monitor state 904.

In at least one embodiment, while in the emergency state 912, theportable gaming device (and/or selected systems, devices, componentsassociated therewith) may be operable to perform one or more of thefollowing (or combinations thereof):

-   -   Set or update a current sampling interval value relating to the        time period or time interval for taking sample measurements of        movement activity relating to the portable gaming device.        According to different embodiments, while in the emergency state        912, the motion detection sampling interval value may be        increased (relative to the monitor state), for example, in order        to obtain additional data points for more accurate analysis of        the current events/conditions at the portable gaming device. For        example, while in the emergency state 912, the motion detection        sampling interval value may be set to a value within the range        of 20-35 milliseconds, such as, for example, about 20 msec.    -   Monitor the portable gaming device movement data for detection        of any potentially significant events and/or conditions.    -   Monitor the portable gaming device movement data for detection        of any critical events and/or conditions.    -   Periodically store selected portions of the portable gaming        device movement data in non-volatile memory.    -   Acquire and/or store selected information relating to portable        gaming device in non-volatile memory. According to specific        embodiments, the selected information may include, but are not        limited to, one or more of the following (or combinations        thereof): historical game data, critical information, game state        data, wager related data, portable gaming device state        information, and/or other data or information which may be        desired and/or used for reconstructing prior conditions, events,        and/or states at the portable gaming device.    -   Transmit (e.g., periodically, at specified times, in real-time,        etc.) selected information to one or more remote or external        devices. According to specific embodiments, the selected        information may include, but are not limited to, one or more of        the following (or combinations thereof): historical game data,        critical information, game state data, wager related data,        portable gaming device state information, portable gaming device        movement data, and/or other data or information which may be        desired and/or used for reconstructing prior conditions, events,        and/or states at the portable gaming device.    -   Compare different samples of the portable gaming device movement        data (e.g., which were taken at different time intervals) to        identify or determine any changes or differences (e.g., deltas)        between the data samples.    -   Compare samples of the portable gaming device movement data to        one or more predefined event data profiles.    -   Take appropriate action to prevent damage to one or more        components or systems of the portable gaming device (such as,        for example, suspending or shutting down one or more systems or        components, parking hard drive heads, etc.).    -   Provide instructions for shutting down one or more components of        the portable gaming device.    -   Provide notification of the unit's freefall condition to an        external system.    -   Record various data relating to the event/condition such as, for        example: the maximum distance the unit has fallen, the unit's        maximum velocity at impact, details relating to the impact        event, conditions or events which occurred at the portable        gaming device before the impact event (which, for example, may        be used to determine or reconstruct how the unit impacted the        floor).    -   Disabling the portable gaming device from play.    -   Automatically power-up the portable gaming device (e.g., if        portable gaming device is in power-off, hibernate and/or standby        mode).    -   Automatically power-up selected components/devices of the        portable gaming device.    -   Etc.

In at least one embodiment, the portable gaming device may continue toremain in the emergency state 912 while one or more critical eventsand/or conditions are detected (915). For example, while the portablegaming device continues to remain in a freefall condition (which hasexceeded 0.20 seconds), a critical event/condition will be detected.Accordingly, in at least one embodiment, during such times the portablegaming device may remain in the emergency state 912.

Additionally, in at least one embodiment, while in emergency state 912,the portable gaming device may continue to remain in the emergency state912 until all appropriate emergency procedures/operations have beencompleted (917).

In at least one embodiment, while in the emergency state 912, if it hasbeen detected that all appropriate emergency procedures have beencompleted, and at least one potentially significant event and/orcondition is detected, a state change to the evaluation state 906 may betriggered 913. Additionally, in at least one embodiment, while in theemergency state 912, if it has been detected that all appropriateemergency procedures have been completed, and no potentially significantevents and/or conditions are detected, a state change to the monitorstate 904 may be triggered 921.

In at least one alternate embodiment (not shown), the portable gamingdevice (and/or data preservation system) may be configured or designedto omit one or more states of operations, such as, for example, theevaluation state (906) of operation.

In some embodiments, one or more portable gaming devices may includefunctionality for implementing at least a portion of the featuresassociated with other mobile devices such as those described, forexample, in one or more of the following references, each of which beingincorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes: U.S.patent application Ser. No. 11/472,585 (Attorney Docket No. IGT1P231)entitled “MOBILE DEVICE FOR PROVIDING FILTERED CASINO INFORMATION BASEDON REAL TIME DATA”; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/062,002(Attorney Docket No. IGT1P341/P-481) for “GAMING SYSTEM AND GAMINGMETHOD.”

According to a specific embodiment, one or more portable gaming devicemay be adapted to implement at least a portion of the featuresassociated with the mobile game service system described in U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/115,164, which is now U.S. Pat. No. 6,800,029,issued Oct. 4, 2004, which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety for all purposes. For example, in one embodiment, the portablegaming device 20 (FIG. 1A) may be comprised of a hand-held game serviceuser interface device (GSUID) and a number of input and output devices.The GSUID may include a display screen which may display a number ofgame service interfaces. These game service interfaces may be generatedon the display screen by a microprocessor of some type within the GSUID.Examples of a hand-held GSUID which may accommodate the game serviceinterfaces are manufactured by Symbol Technologies, Incorporated ofHoltsville, N.Y.

FIG. 10 shows a block diagram illustrating components of a gaming system1000 which may be used for implementing various aspects of exampleembodiments. In FIG. 10, the components of a gaming system 1000 forproviding game software licensing and downloads are describedfunctionally. The described functions may be instantiated in hardware,firmware and/or software and executed on a suitable device. In thesystem 1000, there may be many instances of the same function, such asmultiple game play interfaces 1011. Nevertheless, in FIG. 10, only oneinstance of each function is shown. The functions of the components maybe combined. For example, a single device may comprise the game playinterface 1011 and include trusted memory devices or sources 1009.

The gaming system 1000 may receive inputs from different groups/entitiesand output various services and or information to these groups/entities.For example, game players 1025 primarily input cash or indicia of creditinto the system, make game selections that trigger software downloads,and receive entertainment in exchange for their inputs. Game softwarecontent providers 1015 provide game software for the system and mayreceive compensation for the content they provide based on licensingagreements with the gaming machine operators. Gaming machine operatorsselect game software for distribution, distribute the game software onthe gaming devices in the system 1000, receive revenue for the use oftheir software and compensate the gaming machine operators. The gamingregulators 1030 may provide rules and regulations that must be appliedto the gaming system and may receive reports and other informationconfirming that rules are being obeyed.

In the following paragraphs, details of each component and some of theinteractions between the components are described with respect to FIG.10. The game software license host 1001 may be a server connected to anumber of remote gaming devices that provides licensing services to theremote gaming devices. For example, in other embodiments, the licensehost 1001 may 1) receive token requests for tokens used to activatesoftware executed on the remote gaming devices, 2) send tokens to theremote gaming devices, 3) track token usage and 4) grant and/or renewsoftware licenses for software executed on the remote gaming devices.The token usage may be used in utility based licensing schemes, such asa pay-per-use scheme.

In another embodiment, a game usage-tracking host 1014 may track theusage of game software on a plurality of devices in communication withthe host. The game usage-tracking host 1014 may be in communication witha plurality of game play hosts and gaming machines. From the game playhosts and gaming machines, the game usage tracking host 1014 may receiveupdates of an amount that each game available for play on the deviceshas been played and on amount that has been wagered per game. Thisinformation may be stored in a database and used for billing accordingto methods described in a utility based licensing agreement.

The game software host 1002 may provide game software downloads, such asdownloads of game software or game firmware, to various devious in thegame system 1000. For example, when the software to generate the game isnot available on the game play interface 1011, the game software host1002 may download software to generate a selected game of chance playedon the game play interface. Further, the game software host 1002 maydownload new game content to a plurality of gaming machines via arequest from a gaming machine operator.

In one embodiment, the game software host 1002 may also be a gamesoftware configuration-tracking host 1013. The function of the gamesoftware configuration-tracking host is to keep records of softwareconfigurations and/or hardware configurations for a plurality of devicesin communication with the host (e.g., denominations, number of paylines,paytables, max/min bets). Details of a game software host and a gamesoftware configuration host that may be used with example embodimentsare described in co-pending U.S. Pat. No. 6,645,077, by Rowe, entitled,“Gaming Terminal Data Repository and Information System,” filed Dec. 21,2000, which is incorporated herein in its entirety and for all purposes.

A game play host device 1003 may be a host server connected to aplurality of remote clients that generates games of chance that aredisplayed on a plurality of remote game play interfaces 1011. Forexample, the game play host device 1003 may be a server that providescentral determination for a bingo game play played on a plurality ofconnected game play interfaces 1011. As another example, the game playhost device 1003 may generate games of chance, such as slot games orvideo card games, for display on a remote client. A game player usingthe remote client may be able to select from a number of games that areprovided on the client by the host device 1003. The game play hostdevice 1003 may receive game software management services, such asreceiving downloads of new game software, from the game software host1002 and may receive game software licensing services, such as thegranting or renewing of software licenses for software executed on thedevice 1003, from the game license host 1001.

In particular embodiments, the game play interfaces or other gamingdevices in the gaming system 1000 may be portable devices, such aselectronic tokens, cell phones, smart cards, tablet PC's and PDA's. Theportable devices may support wireless communications and thus, may bereferred to as wireless mobile devices. The network hardwarearchitecture 1016 may be enabled to support communications betweenwireless mobile devices and other gaming devices in gaming system. Inone embodiment, the wireless mobile devices may be used to play games ofchance.

The gaming system 1000 may use a number of trusted information sources.Trusted information sources 1004 may be devices, such as servers, thatprovide information used to authenticate/activate other pieces ofinformation. CRC values used to authenticate software, license tokensused to allow the use of software or product activation codes used toactivate to software are examples of trusted information that might beprovided from a trusted information source 1004. Trusted informationsources may be a memory device, such as an EPROM, that includes trustedinformation used to authenticate other information. For example, a gameplay interface 1011 may store a private encryption key in a trustedmemory device that is used in a private key-public key encryption schemeto authenticate information from another gaming device.

When a trusted information source 1004 is in communication with a remotedevice via a network, the remote device will employ a verificationscheme to verify the identity of the trusted information source. Forexample, the trusted information source and the remote device mayexchange information using public and private encryption keys to verifyeach other's identities. In another example of an embodiment, the remotedevice and the trusted information source may engage in methods usingzero knowledge proofs to authenticate each of their respectiveidentities. Details of zero knowledge proofs that may be used withexample embodiments are described in US publication no. 2003/0203756, byJackson, filed on Apr. 25, 2002 and entitled, “Authentication in aSecure Computerized Gaming System, which is incorporated herein in itsentirety and for all purposes.

Gaming devices storing trusted information might utilize apparatus ormethods to detect and prevent tampering. For instance, trustedinformation stored in a trusted memory device may be encrypted toprevent its misuse. In addition, the trusted memory device may besecured behind a locked door. Further, one or more sensors may becoupled to the memory device to detect tampering with the memory deviceand provide some record of the tampering. In yet another example, thememory device storing trusted information might be designed to detecttampering attempts and clear or erase itself when an attempt attampering has been detected.

The gaming system 1000 of example embodiments may include devices 1006that provide authorization to download software from a first device to asecond device and devices 1007 that provide activation codes orinformation that allow downloaded software to be activated. The devices,1006 and 1007, may be remote servers and may also be trusted informationsources. One example of a method of providing product activation codesthat may be used with example embodiments is describes in previouslyincorporated U.S. Pat. No. 6,264,561.

A device 1006 that monitors a plurality of gaming devices to determineadherence of the devices to gaming jurisdictional rules 1008 may beincluded in the system 1000. In one embodiment, a gaming jurisdictionalrule server may scan software and the configurations of the software ona number of gaming devices in communication with the gaming rule serverto determine whether the software on the gaming devices is valid for usein the gaming jurisdiction where the gaming device is located. Forexample, the gaming rule server may request a digital signature, such asCRC's, of particular software components and compare them with anapproved digital signature value stored on the gaming jurisdictionalrule server.

Further, the gaming jurisdictional rule server may scan the remotegaming device to determine whether the software is configured in amanner that is acceptable to the gaming jurisdiction where the gamingdevice is located. For example, a maximum bet limit may vary fromjurisdiction to jurisdiction and the rule enforcement server may scan agaming device to determine its current software configuration and itslocation and then compare the configuration on the gaming device withapproved parameters for its location.

A gaming jurisdiction may include rules that describe how game softwaremay be downloaded and licensed. The gaming jurisdictional rule servermay scan download transaction records and licensing records on a gamingdevice to determine whether the download and licensing was carried outin a manner that is acceptable to the gaming jurisdiction in which thegaming device is located. In general, the game jurisdictional ruleserver may be utilized to confirm compliance to any gaming rules passedby a gaming jurisdiction when the information needed to determine rulecompliance is remotely accessible to the server.

Game software, firmware or hardware residing a particular gaming devicemay also be used to check for compliance with local gamingjurisdictional rules. In one embodiment, when a gaming device isinstalled in a particular gaming jurisdiction, a software programincluding jurisdiction rule information may be downloaded to a securememory location on a gaming machine or the jurisdiction rule informationmay be downloaded as data and utilized by a program on the gamingmachine. The software program and/or jurisdiction rule information mayused to check the gaming device software and software configurations forcompliance with local gaming jurisdictional rules. In anotherembodiment, the software program for ensuring compliance andjurisdictional information may be installed in the gaming machine priorto its shipping, such as at the factory where the gaming machine ismanufactured.

The gaming devices in game system 1000 may utilize trusted softwareand/or trusted firmware. Trusted firmware/software is trusted in thesense that is used with the assumption that it has not been tamperedwith. For instance, trusted software/firmware may be used toauthenticate other game software or processes executing on a gamingdevice. As an example, trusted encryption programs and authenticationprograms may be stored on an EPROM on the gaming machine or encoded intoa specialized encryption chip. As another example, trusted gamesoftware, i.e., game software approved for use on gaming devices by alocal gaming jurisdiction may be required on gaming devices on thegaming machine.

In example embodiments, the devices may be connected by a network 1016with different types of hardware using different hardware architectures.Game software can be quite large and frequent downloads can place asignificant burden on a network, which may slow information transferspeeds on the network. For game-on-demand services that require frequentdownloads of game software in a network, efficient downloading isessential for the service to viable. Thus, in example embodiments,network efficient devices 1010 may be used to actively monitor andmaintain network efficiency. For instance, software locators may be usedto locate nearby locations of game software for peer-to-peer transfersof game software. In another example, network traffic may be monitoredand downloads may be actively rerouted to maintain network efficiency.

One or more devices in example embodiments may provide game software andgame licensing related auditing, billing and reconciliation reports toserver 1012. For example, a software licensing billing server maygenerate a bill for a gaming device operator based upon a usage of gamesover a time period on the gaming devices owned by the operator. Inanother example, a software auditing server may provide reports on gamesoftware downloads to various gaming devices in the gaming system 1000and current configurations of the game software on these gaming devices.

At particular time intervals, the software auditing server 1012 may alsorequest software configurations from a number of gaming devices in thegaming system. The server may then reconcile the software configurationon each gaming device. In one embodiment, the software auditing server1012 may store a record of software configurations on each gaming deviceat particular times and a record of software download transactions thathave occurred on the device. By applying each of the recorded gamesoftware download transactions since a selected time to the softwareconfiguration recorded at the selected time, a software configuration isobtained. The software auditing server may compare the softwareconfiguration derived from applying these transactions on a gamingdevice with a current software configuration obtained from the gamingdevice. After the comparison, the software-auditing server may generatea reconciliation report that confirms that the download transactionrecords are consistent with the current software configuration on thedevice. The report may also identify any inconsistencies. In anotherembodiment, both the gaming device and the software auditing server maystore a record of the download transactions that have occurred on thegaming device and the software auditing server may reconcile theserecords.

There are many possible interactions between the components describedwith respect to FIG. 10. Many of the interactions are coupled. Forexample, methods used for game licensing may affect methods used forgame downloading and vice versa. For the purposes of explanation,details of a few possible interactions between the components of thesystem 1000 relating to software licensing and software downloads havebeen described. The descriptions are selected to illustrate particularinteractions in the game system 1000. These descriptions are providedfor the purposes of explanation only and are not intended to limit thescope of example embodiments described herein.

FIGS. 11A-E and 12A-E illustrate example embodiments of different typesof data patterns (and/or associated data values) which include portablegaming device movement data relating to different example events and/orconditions which may occur at a portable gaming device.

More specifically, FIGS. 11A-E illustrate an example embodiment ofdifferent types of data patterns (e.g., FIGS. 11A-D) and associated datavalues (e.g., FIG. 11E) which include actual portable gaming devicemovement data relating to a first experimental “drop test” event inwhich a portable gaming device was dropped straight down onto the floor.This test was intended to simulate the dropping of a portable gamingdevice as it is being carried by the user.

In this particular example, the motion detection components of theportable gaming device being tested included a 4th order low pass filterwith a cutoff frequency of about 5 Hz, which was configured to filterout unwanted high frequency acceleration data. Additionally, forpurposes of conducting this first experimental “drop test” the portablegaming device was held at a height of about 20 inches above the floor.The floor was covered with bubble wrap to minimize damage to theportable gaming device.

FIG. 11A shows a composite graphical data pattern 1100 graphicallyrepresenting actual X-axis (1122), Y-axis (1102), and Z-axis (1132)accelerometer data relating to the first experimental “drop test” eventof the portable gaming device. More specifically, the data which isgraphically illustrated in the graph of FIG. 11A represents actualX-axis (1122), Y-axis (1102), and Z-axis (1132) accelerometer data(e.g., generated from the portable gaming device) plotted as a functionof time, wherein the units of the vertical axis corresponds to MEMS datavalues (e.g., 1104), and wherein the units 1106 of the horizontal axiscorrespond to sample-based time units (e.g., representing sequentialperiodic samples which were taken over a given time interval). As shownin the example of FIG. 11A, the MEMS data values may be correlated tocorresponding values of gravitational acceleration units (g) 1108.

In at least one embodiment, the graphical data presented in FIG. 11A mayutilize different colors and/or patterns for presenting the compositedata in a manner which allows a reader to more easily distinguishbetween the different data sets/data patterns being displayed.

FIG. 11B shows a graph 1110 which include a graphical data pattern 1102graphically representing the Y-axis portion of accelerometer datarelating to the first experimental “drop test” event of the portablegaming device.

FIG. 11C shows a graph 1120 which include a graphical data pattern 1122graphically representing the Z-axis portion of accelerometer datarelating to the first experimental “drop test” event of the portablegaming device.

FIG. 11D shows a graph 1130 which include a graphical data pattern 1132graphically representing the X-axis portion of accelerometer datarelating to the first experimental “drop test” event of the portablegaming device.

As illustrated in FIG. 11B, the Y-axis portion of accelerometer dataaccelerometer data is plotted as a function of acceleration vs. time,wherein the units of the vertical axis corresponds to MEMS data values1104 or gravitational acceleration unit values 1108, and wherein theunits 1106 of the horizontal axis correspond to sample-based time units(e.g., representing sequential periodic samples which were taken over agiven time interval).

As shown in the example of FIG. 11B, reference point 1101 represents aninitial condition of the portable gaming device before being dropped.Thus, for example, as shown at 1101 (approximately corresponding to timesample 120), the Y-axis accelerometer indicates about a 1 g downwardforce. Similarly, as illustrated in FIG. 11A, at approximately timesample 120, the X-axis and Z-axis accelerometers both indicate about 0 gforce.

Returning to FIG. 11B, at reference point 1103, the portable gamingdevice is dropped, and begins to fall. In this particular embodiment,the data preservation system has been configured or designed to monitorthe freefall condition of the portable gaming device, and to initiate oractivate a “shut down” signal after it has been detected that the unithas fallen more than 10 inches. In this particular example, referencepoint 1105 indicates the approximate location where/when the “shut down”signal was activated.

FIG. 11E shows an example embodiment of a data table 1180 which includesnumeric data values representing actual X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axisaccelerometer data relating to the first experimental “drop test” eventof the portable gaming device.

In the example of FIG. 11E, data table 1180, column 1181 shows thesample-based time values which correspond to the sample-based time units(e.g., 1106) of the horizontal axis of each of the graphs illustrated inFIGS. 11A-D. Column 1182 shows MEMS data values which correspond toX-axis accelerometer data generated during the first experimental “droptest.” Column 1184 shows MEMS data values which correspond to Y-axisaccelerometer data generated during the first experimental “drop test.”Column 1186 shows MEMS data values which correspond to Z-axisaccelerometer data generated during the first experimental “drop test.”

Additionally, as shown in the example of FIG. 11E, columns 1188, 1190,1192, and 1194 relate to a subset of the portable gaming device movementdata generated during the first experimental “drop test.” In oneembodiment, this subset of portable gaming device movement data may beused to characterize the relative boundaries (e.g., start, middle, end)of an “event” such as, for example, a “freefall” event.

Thus, for example, as shown in the example of FIG. 11E, column 1188includes relative sample-based time values relating to the “freefall”event. For example, it is assumed in the example of FIG. 11E that the“freefall” event begins at event sample number 0 (corresponding toabsolute sample number 127). Thus, in this particular example, it isassumed that the portable gaming device begins it's freefall at eventsample number 0 (corresponding to absolute sample number 127). Column1190 shows the relative elapsed time values (in seconds) relating to thefalling portable gaming device during the “freefall” event. Column 1192shows the relative displacement or distance values (in inches) relatingto the falling portable gaming device during the “freefall” event.

Column 1194 indicates the relative state of the “shut down” signal(e.g., 0=inactive, 1=active) relating to the falling portable gamingdevice during the “freefall” event. As shown in the example of FIG. 11E,the state of the “shut down” signal remains inactive during a firstinterval of the “freefall” event. At reference location 1191(corresponding to a relative freefall duration time of 0.231 seconds,and a relative freefall displacement of 10.245 inches), the “shut down”signal becomes active, and remains active during the remainder portionof the “freefall” event.

In at least one embodiment, it may be assumed that at least one criticalevent/condition has been detected at the portable gaming device at eventsample number 11, corresponding to reference location 1191. Accordingly,in one embodiment, the portable gaming device (and/or data preservationsystem) may enter an emergency state of operation at event sample number11, which, in turn, may cause the portable gaming device (and/or datapreservation system) to automatically perform one or more appropriateactions in response. As discussed previously, one such action mayinclude sending one or more “shut down” signals to one or morecomponents/devices of the portable gaming device. In another embodiment,the activation of the “shut down” signal at event sample number 11 maytrigger or cause the portable gaming device (and/or data preservationsystem) to enter the emergency state of operation.

FIGS. 12A-E illustrate an example embodiment of different types of datapatterns (e.g., FIGS. 12A-D) and associated data values (e.g., FIG. 12E)which include actual portable gaming device movement data relating to asecond experimental “table fall” event in which a portable gaming devicewas made to slide off a table 29 inches to the floor.

In this particular example, the motion detection components of theportable gaming device being tested included a 4th order low pass filterwith a cutoff frequency of about 5 Hz, which was configured to filterout unwanted high frequency acceleration data. Additionally, the floorwas covered with bubble wrap to minimize damage to the portable gamingdevice.

FIG. 12A shows a composite graphical data pattern 1200 graphicallyrepresenting actual X-axis (1222), Z-axis (1202), and Y-axis (1232)accelerometer data relating to the second experimental “table fall”event of the portable gaming device. More specifically, the data whichis graphically illustrated in the graph of FIG. 12A represents actualX-axis (1222), Z-axis (1202), and Y-axis (1232) accelerometer data(e.g., generated from the portable gaming device) plotted as a functionof time, wherein the units of the vertical axis corresponds to MEMS datavalues (e.g., 1204), and wherein the units 1206 of the horizontal axiscorrespond to sample-based time units (e.g., representing sequentialperiodic samples which were taken over a given time interval). As shownin the example of FIG. 12A, the MEMS data values may be correlated tocorresponding values of gravitational acceleration units (g) 1208.

In at least one embodiment, the graphical data presented in FIG. 12A mayutilize different colors and/or patterns for presenting the compositedata in a manner which allows a reader to more easily distinguishbetween the different data sets/data patterns being displayed.

FIG. 12B shows a graph 1230 which include a graphical data pattern 1232graphically representing the Y-axis portion of accelerometer datarelating to the second experimental “table fall” event of the portablegaming device.

FIG. 12C shows a graph 1220 which include a graphical data pattern 1222graphically representing the X-axis portion of accelerometer datarelating to the second experimental “table fall” event of the portablegaming device.

FIG. 12D shows a graph 1210 which include a graphical data pattern 1202graphically representing the Z-axis portion of accelerometer datarelating to the second experimental “table fall” event of the portablegaming device.

As illustrated in FIG. 12D, the Z-axis portion of accelerometer dataaccelerometer data is plotted as a function of acceleration vs. time,wherein the units of the vertical axis corresponds to MEMS data values1204 or gravitational acceleration unit values 1208, and wherein theunits 1206 of the horizontal axis correspond to sample-based time units(e.g., representing sequential periodic samples which were taken over agiven time interval).

As shown in the example of FIG. 12D, reference point 1201 represents aninitial condition of the portable gaming device before being dropped.Thus, for example, as shown at 1201 a (approximately corresponding totime sample 200), the Z-axis accelerometer indicates about a 1 gdownward force. Similarly, as illustrated in FIG. 12A, at approximatelytime sample 200, the X-axis and Y-axis accelerometers both indicateabout 0 g force.

Returning to FIG. 12D, at reference point 1201 b, the Z-axisaccelerometer still indicates about a 1 g downward force. Accordingly,in one embodiment, the relative changes in the Z-axis accelerometervalues between data points 1201 a and 120 b may not be sufficient tomeet or exceed predetermined threshold criteria relating to thedetection of a potentially significant event or condition.

For example, in one embodiment, the predetermined threshold criteria mayspecify that change in acceleration (e.g., for a given axis) must exceed±0.2 g relative to its current value in order to qualify as apotentially significant event or condition. In another embodiment, thepredetermined threshold criteria may specify that the absoluteacceleration (e.g., for a given axis) exceed ±0.6 g in order to qualifyas a potentially significant event or condition. In at least oneembodiment, the threshold criteria may be adjusted, for example, by acontrolling computer or processor (such as, for example, the portablegaming machine processor).

Returning to FIG. 12D, at about reference point 1203, it is assumed thatthe portable gaming device begins its fall from the table. In thisparticular embodiment, the data preservation system has been configuredor designed to monitor the freefall condition of the portable gamingdevice, and to initiate or activate a “shut down” signal after it hasbeen detected that the unit has fallen more than 10 inches. In thisparticular example, reference point 1207 indicates the approximatelocation where/when the “shut down” signal was activated.

FIG. 12E shows an example embodiment of a data table 1280 which includesnumeric data values representing actual X-axis, Z-axis, and Y-axisaccelerometer data relating to the second experimental “table fall”event of the portable gaming device.

In the example of FIG. 12E, data table 1280, column 1281 shows thesample-based time values which correspond to the sample-based time units(e.g., 1206) of the horizontal axis of each of the graphs illustrated inFIGS. 12A-D. Column 1282 shows MEMS data values which correspond toX-axis accelerometer data generated during the second experimental“table fall.” Column 1284 shows MEMS data values which correspond toY-axis accelerometer data generated during the second experimental“table fall.” Column 1286 shows MEMS data values which correspond toZ-axis accelerometer data generated during the second experimental“table fall.”

Additionally, as shown in the example of FIG. 12E, columns 1288, 1290,1292, and 1294 relate to a subset of the portable gaming device movementdata generated during the second experimental “table fall.” In oneembodiment, this subset of portable gaming device movement data may beused to characterize the relative boundaries (e.g., start, middle, end)of an “event” such as, for example, a “freefall” event.

Thus, for example, as shown in the example of FIG. 12E, column 1288includes relative sample-based time values relating to the “freefall”event. For example, it is assumed in the example of FIG. 12E that the“freefall” event begins at event sample number 0 (corresponding toabsolute sample number 296). Thus, in this particular example, it isassumed that the portable gaming device begins it's freefall at eventsample number 0 (corresponding to absolute sample number 296). This isgenerally indicated at reference location 1205 of FIG. 12D.

Returning to FIG. 12E, Column 1290 shows the relative elapsed timevalues (in seconds) relating to the falling portable gaming deviceduring the “freefall” event. Column 1292 shows the relative displacementor distance values (in inches) relating to the falling portable gamingdevice during the “freefall” event.

Column 1294 indicates the relative state of the “shut down” signal(e.g., 0=inactive, 1=active) relating to the falling portable gamingdevice during the “freefall” event. As shown in the example of FIG. 12E,the state of the “shut down” signal remains inactive during a secondinterval of the “freefall” event. At reference location 1291(corresponding to a relative freefall duration time of 0.231 seconds,and a relative freefall displacement of 10.245 inches), the “shut down”signal becomes active, and remains active during the remainder portionof the “freefall” event.

In at least one embodiment, it may be assumed that at least one criticalevent/condition has been detected at the portable gaming device at eventsample number 11, corresponding to reference location 1291. Accordingly,in one embodiment, the portable gaming device (and/or data preservationsystem) may enter an emergency state of operation at event sample number11, which, in turn, may cause the portable gaming device (and/or datapreservation system) to automatically perform one or more appropriateactions in response. As discussed previously, one such action mayinclude sending one or more “shut down” signals to one or morecomponents/devices of the portable gaming device. In another embodiment,the activation of the “shut down” signal at event sample number 11 maytrigger or cause the portable gaming device (and/or data preservationsystem) to enter the emergency state of operation.

Additional details relating to various aspects of gaming technology aredescribed in one or more of the following references:

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/515,184, (Attorney Docket No.IGT1P266A/P-1085A), by Nguyen et al., entitled “INTELLIGENT CASINOGAMING TABLE AND SYSTEMS THEREOF”, filed on Sep. 1, 2006, the entiretyof which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes;

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/155,702, (Attorney Docket No.IGT1P114X3/P-305CIP3), by Nguyen et al., entitled “VIRTUAL LEASH FORPERSONAL GAMING DEVICE”, filed on Jun. 16, 2005, the entirety of whichis incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.

Techniques and mechanisms of the present invention will sometimes bedescribed in singular form for clarity. However, it should be noted thatparticular embodiments include multiple iterations of a technique ormultiple instantiations of a mechanism unless noted otherwise.

Although several preferred embodiments of this invention have beendescribed in detail herein with reference to the accompanying drawings,it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to theseprecise embodiments, and that various changes and modifications may beeffected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from thescope of spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

1. A portable gaming device for use in a casino gaming network,comprising: a gaming controller; memory; a first display; at least oneinterface for communicating with at least one other device in the gamingnetwork; and a data preservation system; the portable gaming devicebeing operable to: control a wager-based game played at the portablegaming device; monitor movement activity relating to the portable gamingdevice; generate movement information relating to movements of theportable gaming device, wherein the movement information includes dataselected from a group consisting of: data relating to rotation of theportable gaming device, data relating to displacement of the portablegaming device, data relating to velocity of the portable gaming device,data relating to acceleration of the portable gaming device, and datarelating to an orientation of the portable gaming device; analyze themovement information with respect to a first set of threshold criteriain order to detect an occurrence of a first critical condition or eventat the portable gaming device; initiate at least one first action inresponse to detection of the first critical condition or event, whereinthe at least one first action includes automatically initiating at leastone first operation to save selected gaming information in non-volatilememory, wherein the selected gaming information includes informationrelating to game play conducted at the portable gaming device.
 2. Theportable gaming device of claim 1 wherein the non-volatile memorycorresponds to local memory of the portable gaming device.
 3. Theportable gaming device of claim 1 wherein the non-volatile memorycorresponds to remote memory located at a remote device different fromthe portable gaming device.
 4. The portable gaming device of claim 1wherein the at least one first action includes: automatically initiatingat least one second operation to identify and save selected informationin non-volatile memory, wherein the selected information includesinformation selected from a group consisting of: portable gaming devicemovement information associated with the first critical event orcondition, historical game data relating to game play conducted at theportable gaming device, game state data relating to game play conductedat the portable gaming device, and wager data relating to game playconducted at the portable gaming device.
 5. The portable gaming deviceof claim 1 being further operable to: identify selected informationresiding in volatile memory at the portable gaming device which is to besaved in non-volatile memory in response to detection of the firstcritical condition or event; and automatically initiate, in response todetection of the first critical condition or event, at least one secondaction to cause the identified information to be saved in non-volatilememory.
 6. The portable gaming device of claim 1 being further operableto: identify, in response to detection of the first critical conditionor event, selected information residing in volatile memory at theportable gaming device which is to be saved in non-volatile memory; andautomatically initiate, in response to detection of the first criticalcondition or event, at least one second action to cause the identifiedinformation to be saved in non-volatile memory; wherein the selectedinformation includes information selected from a group consisting of:portable gaming device movement information associated with the firstcritical event or condition, historical game data relating to game playconducted at the portable gaming device, game state data relating togame play conducted at the portable gaming device, and wager datarelating to game play conducted at the portable gaming device.
 7. Theportable gaming device of claim 1 being further operable to: identify,in response to detection of the first critical condition or event,selected information residing in volatile memory at the portable gamingdevice which is to be saved in non-volatile memory; and automaticallyinitiate, in response to detection of the first critical condition orevent, at least one second action to cause the identified information tobe transmitted to an external or remote device.
 8. The portable gamingdevice of claim 1 wherein the at least one first action includes:identifying selected information residing in volatile memory at theportable gaming device which is to be saved in non-volatile memory; andinitiating at least one second operation to cause the identifiedinformation to be transmitted to an external or remote device.
 9. Theportable gaming device of claim 1 wherein the at least one actionfurther includes automatically initiating at least one second operationselected from a group consisting of: updating a sampling interval valuerelating to a time interval for taking sample measurements of movementactivity relating to the portable gaming device; transmitting selectedinformation to a first external or remote device; providing instructionsfor shutting down one or more components of the portable gaming device;automatically powering-up one or more selected components of theportable gaming device; recording movement information relating to amaximum velocity of the portable gaming device during a first timeinterval; recording movement information relating to a maximumdisplacement of the portable gaming device during a second timeinterval; and recording movement information relating to a maximumacceleration of the portable gaming device during a third time interval.10. The portable gaming device of claim 1 being further operable toperform at least one action selected from a group consisting of:recording movement information relating to a maximum velocity of theportable gaming device during a first time interval; recording movementinformation relating to a maximum displacement of the portable gamingdevice during a second time interval; and recording movement informationrelating to a maximum acceleration of the portable gaming device duringa third time interval.
 11. The portable gaming device of claim 1 beingfurther operable to: determine and record information relating to amaximum velocity of the portable gaming device during a first timeinterval.
 12. The portable gaming device of claim 1 being furtheroperable to: monitor and record information relating to a total numberof times portable gaming device has been dropped.
 13. The portablegaming device of claim 1 being further operable to: monitor and recordinformation relating to each event where the portable gaming device hasexperienced a free fall which exceeds specified minimum thresholdcriteria.
 14. The portable gaming device of claim 1 being furtheroperable to: monitor and record information relating to a number oftimes the portable gaming device has experienced an impact event whichexceeds specified minimum threshold criteria.
 15. The portable gamingdevice of claim 1, wherein the first condition or event corresponds to afreefall condition at the portable gaming device which results in anoccurrence of an impact event at the portable gaming device, theportable gaming device being further operable to: determine and recordinformation relating to a velocity of the portable gaming device at atime of the impact event.
 16. The portable gaming device of claim 1,wherein the first condition or event corresponds to a freefall conditionat the portable gaming device, the portable gaming device being furtheroperable to: determine displacement information relating to a distancewhich the portable gaming device has fallen during a first timeinterval.
 17. The portable gaming device of claim 1 wherein the datapreservation system includes a three axis accelerometer.
 18. Theportable gaming device of claim 1 being further operable to: determineacceleration data relating to an acceleration of the portable gamingdevice during one or more time intervals; and record the accelerationdata as a function of time.
 19. A method of operating a portable gamingdevice for use in a casino gaming network, the portable gaming deviceincluding memory and a data preservation system, the method comprising:controlling a wager-based game played at the portable gaming device;monitoring movement activity relating to the portable gaming device,wherein at least a portion of the monitoring performed by the datapreservation system; generating movement information relating tomovements of the portable gaming device, wherein the movementinformation includes data selected from a group consisting of: datarelating to rotation of the portable gaming device, data relating todisplacement of the portable gaming device, data relating to velocity ofthe portable gaming device, data relating to acceleration of theportable gaming device, and data relating to an orientation of theportable gaming device; analyzing the movement information with respectto a first set of threshold criteria in order to detecting an occurrenceof a first critical condition or event at the portable gaming device,wherein at least a portion of the analyzing is performed by the datapreservation system; initiating at least one first action in response todetection of the first critical condition or event, wherein at least aportion of the initiating is performed by the data preservation system;wherein the at least one first action includes automatically initiatingat least one first operation to save selected gaming information innon-volatile memory, wherein the selected gaming information includesinformation relating to game play conducted at the portable gamingdevice.
 20. The method of claim 19 wherein the non-volatile memorycorresponds to local memory of the portable gaming device.
 21. Themethod of claim 19 wherein the non-volatile memory corresponds to remotememory located at a remote device different from the portable gamingdevice.
 22. The method of claim 19 wherein the at least one first actionincludes: automatically initiating at least one second operation toidentify and save selected information in non-volatile memory, whereinthe selected information includes information selected from a groupconsisting of: portable gaming device movement information associatedwith the first critical event or condition, historical game datarelating to game play conducted at the portable gaming device, gamestate data relating to game play conducted at the portable gamingdevice, and wager data relating to game play conducted at the portablegaming device.
 23. The method of claim 19 further comprising:identifying selected information residing in volatile memory at theportable gaming device which is to be saved in non-volatile memory inresponse to detection of the first critical condition or event; andautomatically initiating, at the portable gaming device and in responseto detection of the first critical condition or event, at least onesecond action to cause the identified information to be saved innon-volatile memory.
 24. The method of claim 19 further comprising:identifying, at the portable gaming device and in response to detectionof the first critical condition or event, selected information residingin volatile memory at the portable gaming device which is to be saved innon-volatile memory; and automatically initiating, at the portablegaming device and in response to detection of the first criticalcondition or event, at least one second action to cause the identifiedinformation to be saved in non-volatile memory; wherein the selectedinformation includes information selected from a group consisting of:portable gaming device movement information associated with the firstcritical event or condition, historical game data relating to game playconducted at the portable gaming device, game state data relating togame play conducted at the portable gaming device, and wager datarelating to game play conducted at the portable gaming device.
 25. Themethod of claim 19 further comprising: identifying, at the portablegaming device and in response to detection of the first criticalcondition or event, selected information residing in volatile memory atthe portable gaming device which is to be saved in non-volatile memory;and automatically initiating, at the portable gaming device and inresponse to detection of the first critical condition or event, at leastone second action to cause the identified information to be transmittedto an external or remote device.
 26. The method of claim 19 wherein theat least one first action includes: identifying selected informationresiding in volatile memory at the portable gaming device which is to besaved in non-volatile memory; and initiating at least one secondoperation to cause the identified information to be transmitted to anexternal or remote device.
 27. The method of claim 19 wherein the atleast one action further includes automatically initiating at least onesecond operation selected from a group consisting of: updating asampling interval value relating to a time interval for taking samplemeasurements of movement activity relating to the portable gamingdevice; transmitting selected information to a first external or remotedevice; providing instructions for shutting down one or more componentsof the portable gaming device; automatically powering-up one or moreselected components of the portable gaming device; recording movementinformation relating to a maximum velocity of the portable gaming deviceduring a first time interval; recording movement information relating toa maximum displacement of the portable gaming device during a secondtime interval; and recording movement information relating to a maximumacceleration of the portable gaming device during a third time interval.28. The method of claim 19 further comprising: determining andrecording, at the portable gaming device, information relating to amaximum velocity of the portable gaming device during a first timeinterval.
 29. The method of claim 19 further comprising: monitoring andrecording, at the portable gaming device, information relating to eachevent where the portable gaming device has experienced a free fall whichexceeds specified minimum threshold criteria.
 30. The method of claim 19further comprising: monitoring and recording, at the portable gamingdevice, information relating to a number of times the portable gamingdevice has experienced an impact event which exceeds specified minimumthreshold criteria.
 31. The method of claim 19, wherein the firstcondition or event corresponds to a freefall condition at the portablegaming device which results in an occurrence of an impact event at theportable gaming device, the method further comprising: determining andrecording, at the portable gaming device, information relating to avelocity of the portable gaming device at a time of the impact event.32. The method of claim 19, wherein the first condition or eventcorresponds to a freefall condition at the portable gaming device, themethod further comprising: determining, at the portable gaming device,displacement information relating to a distance which the portablegaming device has fallen during a first time interval.
 33. The method ofclaim 19 further comprising: determining, at the portable gaming device,acceleration data relating to an acceleration of the portable gamingdevice during one or more time intervals; and recording, at the portablegaming device, the acceleration data as a function of time.
 34. Aportable gaming device for use in a casino gaming network, comprising: agaming controller; memory; a first display; at least one interface forcommunicating with at least one other device in the gaming network;means for controlling a wager-based game played at the portable gamingdevice; means for monitoring movement activity relating to the portablegaming device, wherein at least a portion of the monitoring performed bythe data preservation system; means for generating movement informationrelating to movements of the portable gaming device, wherein themovement information includes data selected from a group consisting of:data relating to rotation of the portable gaming device, data relatingto displacement of the portable gaming device, data relating to velocityof the portable gaming device, data relating to acceleration of theportable gaming device, and data relating to an orientation of theportable gaming device; means for analyzing the movement informationwith respect to a first set of threshold criteria in order to detectingan occurrence of a first critical condition or event at the portablegaming device, wherein at least a portion of the analyzing is performedby the data preservation system; and means for initiating at least onefirst action in response to detection of the first critical condition orevent, wherein at least a portion of the initiating is performed by thedata preservation system; wherein the at least one first action includesautomatically initiating at least one first operation to save selectedgaming information in non-volatile memory, wherein the selected gaminginformation includes information relating to game play conducted at theportable gaming device.